Dear Editor
2012 marks the 30th anniversary of the presence of HIV and, after 30 years of extensive work to stop the transmission of HIV, much work still needs to be done. This Dec. 1, World AIDS Day, please take a moment to consider the effects of HIV on the world.
Approximately 34.2 million people are currently living with HIV in the world with roughly 67,000 in Canada. That's about one in every 500 people in the world that has HIV. Saskatchewan currently has the highest rates of HIV in Canada and yet many people still think that it is something that only affects "addicts," "street people" or "gays." This is in fact something that all of us must take ownership over and know the facts in order for us all to be protected.
Great advancements have been made in HIV medications and treatments, which have enabled people with HIV to live with HIV as a chronic infection. But while things have improved, we face the risk of becoming ambivalent about becoming infected with HIV. Many youth and adults I work with still don't know their HIV status, how HIV is transmitted, what risk they might be at or even how HIV affects the body. These are all important things all of us should know if we hope to effectively address the transmission of HIV in our community.
On this World AIDS day, here are a few things you can do to help in the fight against HIV: find out what HIV is and how it is transmitted; get an HIV test and know your status (available at your doctors office or the Sexual Health Clinic); pass along your knowledge to your families and especially youth; and consider that those with HIV are actual people and deserve respect like all other people.
If you would like further information, please contact Kent Lindgren at 306-937-6700 or [email protected].
Kent Lindgren
HIV Project Coordinator
Battlefords Family Health Centre, North Battleford.
