March 14, 2013
Strive for Zero?
By
David Ng
The much anticipated Day 3 of the #CDC2013 #FNhealth conference has finally arrived!
We were looking forward to Day 3 because the presentations today covered the topics of HIV/AIDS and harm reduction. Kathy Wrath talked about doing harm reduction in small communities, and a lot of the stigma and misinformation about harm reduction that exists in communities. She pointed out an interesting fact that drug users are often the biggest opponents to harm reduction! So in order to "do" harm reduction effectively in communities, we have to consider how and where people are receiving care. Who are they listening to and where are people going to receive help? Kathy explored a part of grassroots outreach that is fundamental to reaching people - using peer groups. By using existing social networks, we can meet people where they are.
On the topic of HIV, we loved the call to action of "Let's strive for zero!"
HIV is a pressing topic for First Nations communities, as indigenous people in Canada are overrepresented in HIV infection statistics. At the conference today, we heard from a wide range of different community initiatives to mitigate the spread and stigma of HIV/AIDS. One of the main messages that came out of the HIV presentations was the idea that HIV is a multi-layered problem. Indigenous communities experience high HIV rates due to many different reasons, including poverty, political marginalization, colonization, and racism. These different layers come together to create a context that is unsafe. In order to mitigate the spread of HIV/AIDS, interrogating these different layers is critical. As we begin to unravel these problems, we will hopefully come across solutions!
Tag(s):
Aboriginal,
Chee Mamuk,
First Nations,
health promotion,
Harm Reduction,
HIV AIDS,
Insite
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