XXX Threat

1. XXX Threat HIV, Drug Addiction, Sex Work

2. Nancy Gunnarson Certified HIV Tester and Counselor At Philadelphia FIGHT

3. AGENDA • TALK ABOUT HIV • HIV/AIDS Myths/Fact’s • Importance of Getting an HIV Test • Importance of Needle Exchange Programs • Sex Workers Rights

4. WHAT IS HIV • It’s a virus • Transmitted from person to person • Damages the immune system

5. HIV facts at a Glance • People are still contracting or transmitting HIV • If you think it will not happen to you it can • The only way not to contract HIV is Safe Sex ( Condoms, Dental dams ) Don’t share works and cooker, cotton, water • Get Tested Know. Your Status • STIGMA around HIV still exist –But through Support & Education STIGMA can be greatly minimized • Funding for prevention/education programs are being cut

6. TRANMISSION of HIV • 4 Body Fluids only • Blood, Semen, Vaginal Fluids, Breast Milk • Unprotected Sex ( Anal, Vaginal, Oral ) • Sharing Needles ( Drugs, Tattoo’s, Hormone's, Piercings ) • Mother to Child ( if not in Care)

7. Difference Between HIV and AIDS

8. What is the difference between HIV and AIDS? Human: because this virus can only infect human beings. Immune-deficiency: because the effect of the virus is to create a deficiency, a failure to work properly, within the body’s immune system. Virus: because this organism is a virus, which means one of its characteristics is that it is incapable of reproducing by itself. It reproduces by taking over the machinery of the human cell. Acquired: because it’s a condition one must acquire or get infected with; not something transmitted through the genes Immune: because it affects the body’s immune system, the part of the body which usually works to fight off germs such as bacteria and viruses Deficiency: because it makes the immune system deficient (makes it not work properly) Syndrome: because someone with AIDS may experience a wide range of different diseases and opportunistic infections.

9. HIV and AIDS Myths and Facts

10. None of this is true! MYTHS • There is a cure for HIV. • Kissing / causal contact • “ I’m just a carrier.” • You can tell that someone has HIV just by looking at them. • HIV does not affect me. • HIV infection is a death sentence. • It won’t happen to me.

11. FACTS All of this is true! There is NO cure for HIV infection. You don’t get HIV by casual contact. You can still give HIV to another person even if your viral load is undetectable. You cannot tell who has HIV by looking at them. HIV affects all of us. HIV is NOT a death sentence. There is effective treatment for HIV infection. Anyone could get HIV.

12. Importance of Getting an HIV Test

13. HIV Test • Who needs to get HIV Test ? • We encourage people to get tested • Know your Status • What if test is Positive ? • What you need to Know if Positive Results • Ways to stay Negative • How not to Transmit or Contract

14. Who Needs to Get HIV Test • Anyone that has unprotected sex • Share I.V. Needles, Drugs, Cooker, Water Cap • Men that have Sex with Men • Baby born to HIV Positive Mom (not in Care) • People who have Multiple Sex Partners • Tattoo’s or Piercing at Party’s/Jail • Pregnant Women • Remember HIV only Transmits through • Blood, Semen, Vaginal Fluids, Breast Milk and needs an opening to enter it your blood stream

15. HOW DO WE TEST for HIV • ORAL is a swab that look for HIV antibodies in the mucus membrane • RAPID is a finger stick that collects a small amount of blood in collector then with solution in test • BLOOD when you have labs done that can be sent away • If POSITIVE Test a Confirmatory test is Needed then that is sent away and ELISA WESTERN BLOT would be performed

16. When someone tests Positive What a positive result means

17. Life after a Positive Diagnosis • BREATH • Process the Feeling • Next Steps to Take • Learn the Facts • Create a Support Network • We Do Recover • Guilt • Denial • Anger • Revenge • Shame • Stigma

18. Living with HIV • Avoid Contracting STI’s • Have Regular Check-Ups • Find a Knowledgeable Health Provider • Understand your Medications • Seek Advice on family planning methods • Be aware of Risk’s • Women ask for Cervical screening’s • Ask to have Blood work explained • Stay Informed • Stay up to Date • Be aware of how you’re Feeling

19. WHAT IS AN AIDS DIAGNOSIS • CD4 level below 200 • It is possible for someone to be diagnosed AIDS when a developed an opportunistic infection. • 2 or more OI’s A person is diagnosed with AIDS when they have developed an AIDS related condition or symptom, called an opportunistic infection, or an AIDS related cancer. The infections are called ‘opportunistic’ because they take advantage of the opportunity offered by a weakened immune system.

20. Needle Exchange and HIV

21. Why we need Needle Exchange • One-third of all AIDS cases are linked to injection drug use. • For women, 64 percent of all AIDS cases are due to injection drug use or sex with partners who inject drugs. • Injection drug use is the source of infection for more than half of all children born with HIV. • More than a million people in the United States inject drugs • Drug use costs to society (in health care, lost productivity, accidents, and crime) more than $50 billion a year. • People who inject drugs imperil their health and that of their needle sharing partners, sexual partners and offspring.

22. Needle Exchange Reduces HIV Risks • Though rehab is a better choice, not all drug injectors are ready to quit. • Those who cannot or will not stop injecting drugs can avoid spreading HIV by suing a sterile needle for each injection. • Users who share needles should disinfect their injection equipment thoroughly with bleach • Though it’s not as safe as always using a sterile needle and syringe.

23. However… IDUs often struggle with multiple health risks due to social, economic and psychological factors. HIV prevention may not be their top concern since they face other more pressing daily challenges such as addiction, poverty, incarceration, homelessness, stigma, guilt, shamedepression, mental illness and past trauma.

24. Sex Work and HIV As well as Hep C and other STIs

25. The Unique Issues • Multiple partners and inconsistent use of condoms • Legal issues • Criminalization of HIV • No legal recognition as a profession • Social and economic factors • Drug use • Migration, mobility and trafficking

26. HIV prevention amongst sex workers: what works? • An increased level of condom use and safer sex amongst sex workers and their clients. • Increased sex worker involvement and control over their working and social conditions. • A reduction in the number of sexually transmitted infections occurring amongst sex workers.

27. Thailand • Thailand: 100% condom program • Government-run campaign aimed to enforce condom use in all of Thailand’s brothels and massage parlors

28. India: Sonagachi and Avahan As well as encouraging condom use, the project has addressed the wider social and economic challenges facing sex workers.