Sexual Assault & HIV : The Facts

1. Sexual Assault & HIV :The Facts East Los Angeles Women’s Center

2. East Los Angeles Women’s Center Marisela Velazquez Interim Executive Director Thelma Garcia AIDS Program Coordinator Sonia Rivera Sexual Assault Program Volunteer Coordinator Alejandra Aguilar HIV Promotora / Health Educator Sexual Assault Advocate

3. East Los Angeles Women’s Center Mission The mission of the East Los Angeles Women’s Center is to provide a variety of services for women, with an emphasis on sexual and domestic violence and HIV/AIDS. Vision Working together to create a society free of violence and to provide safety and hope. We are a place were your silence is heard

4. East Los Angeles Women’s Center • Sexual Assault Services: • Accompaniments, counseling, support and prevention education • Domestic Violence Counseling Services: • Counseling, case management services and prevention education • HIV/ AIDS Education/Prevention Services: • HIV Promotora certified training, Bilingual HIV/AIDS Hotline, community education and prevention

5. HIV/AIDS HIV destroys a certain kind of blood cell (CD4+ T cells) which is crucial to the normal function of the human immune system. • Main ways of HIV transmission • The HIV virus is mainly spread by unprotected sex: Oral, Anal & Vaginal • Babies born to HIV-infected mother • Sharing needles with an HIV-infected person • Body fluids that can infect you with HIV are: • 1.) Blood • 2.) Semen • 3.) pre-ejaculatory liquid (pre-cum) • 4.) Vaginal secretions • 5.) Breast milk (if mother is infected)

6. Sexual Assault and HIV/AIDS • 1 out of every 3 women in Los Angeles County would be raped at least once in her lifetime (Human Relations Commission) • Around the world at least I women in 3 has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Most often the abuser is a member of her own family. (John Hopkins School of Public Health 2000) • Sexual Abuse in childhood is associated with risk-taking behavior later in life, increasing an individual’s lifetime risk of contracting HIV (WHO, 2006) • Women can be infected with the HIV virus trough forced sex; the chances of a woman contracting HIV via a forced sexual encounter are probably increased since forced sex often involves trauma and tissue tearing which can provide an open door to the virus (WHO, 2006)

7. Sexual Assault and HIV/AIDS • Possibility of HIV infection from Sexual Assault/ Rape: • HIV is fairly hard to get from a single contact • Numerous Sexually Transmitted Diseases • Specific physical trauma to the victim • There are only a few cases of HIV from a sexual assault • Increased risky behaviors overtime Source: The United States Attorney’s Office, Central District of California http://wd.usdoj.gov/usao/cac/vw/sexual.html

8. Sexual Assault and HIV/AIDS • Testing for HIV and Sexually Transmitted Diseases • Testing and Confidentiality • HIV Testing and the perpetrator of Sexual Assault • Counseling and Information Source: The United States Attorney’s Office, Central District of California http://wd.usdoj.gov/usao/cac/vw/sexual.html

9. HIV/AIDS Treatment • There is no cure for AIDS, however, the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) has approved the use of certain prescription drugs in the treatment of AIDS-related illnesses. • Antiretroviral drugs work in different ways to keep HIV from making more copies of itself.

10. Sexual Assault and HIV/AIDS HIV Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Following Sexual Assault In California • Timing • Age of Survivor • Consideration of Act(s) of Assault • Consideration of Assailant’s HIV Status • Consideration of Other Factors http://www.hawaii.edu/hivandaids/links_SexAssaultHIVPEP.htm

11. Resources 1 800 656-4673 National Sexual Assault Hotline www.rainn.org 1 888 232-6348 Center for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov/hiv 1 916 446-2520 California Coalition Against Sexual Assault www.calcasa.org 1 800 367-2437 California HIV/AIDS Hotline 1 800 400-7432 Promoters in Action Against AIDS Bilingual HIV/AIDS Hotline 1 800 585-6231 East Los Angeles Rape and Battering Hotline

12. East Los Angeles Women’s Center 1255 S. Atlantic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90022 323-526-5819 323-526-5822 fax www.elawc.org alejandra.aguilar@elawc.org thelma@elawc.org sonia@elawc.org Thank you !