NSW’s leading HIV/AIDS organisation says this year’s World AIDS Day marks a turning point in the response to HIV with a range of new approaches emerging that offer the potential to achieve a significant reduction in HIV transmission, here and internationally.
This year’s World AIDS Day also marks 30 years of HIV and 20 of the red ribbon as a symbol of HIV/AIDS. Over this time, NSW’s response to the epidemic has been one of the most effective in the world, with NSW HIV transmission rates remaining relatively low and stable for well over the last decade.
ACON President Mark Orr says the effectiveness of NSW’s response is underlined by the fact that not one case of HIV transmission from a sex worker to a client has ever been recorded in NSW. “This remarkable outcome is testament to the effectiveness of the current regulatory model for sex work in NSW as well as the quality of our overall HIV response achievement to date.”
Mr Orr says while the work that has achieved low and stable HIV transmission rates in NSW is greatly valued, “our goal now is a significant and sustained reduction in transmission, and there are some promising new developments on the horizon that could get us there.”
“Advances in biomedical methods of HIV prevention – such as vaccines, microbicides and pre-exposure prophylaxis – have an important role to play and we need to embrace the potential they offer. In the meantime, increasing testing rates and improving access to treatment are two things we can do right now to strengthen our response.”
Mr Orr says the recent start of NSW’s first trial of rapid HIV testing – which delivers results within 30 minutes – is an important advance. “The experience of rapid testing overseas shows that access to testing that’s quick, cheap and convenient encourages more gay men to get tested, and improving access to testing is essential for reducing HIV transmission rates because knowing your HIV status enables you to take action that reduces the risk of passing on the virus.”
Mr Orr says improving access to HIV treatments is also a much awaited reform. “Effective treatments have radically transformed the health and wellbeing of many people with HIV, and new research confirms they can help reduce HIV transmission.
“Unfortunately, the only place you can currently get HIV medicines are from hospital pharmacies. We’ve argued for years that this is an impractical model that discourages uptake of treatment and unnecessarily burdens people with HIV. We’ve been working with the relevant authorities for some time on introducing a community pharmacy model and we look forward to a positive outcome in the near future.”
Mr Orr says World AIDS Day is about reflecting on the past as well as looking to the future. “Our community’s response to HIV/AIDS over the last 30 years has been second to none. It has been innovative, generous, wise and supportive of people living with HIV.
“World AIDS Day provides us with an important opportunity to reflect on what those things mean today, recommit ourselves as individuals and as a community to containing the spread of HIV and stand in solidarity with people living with HIV.
“And as we do all these things, we particularly remember those many friends, lovers, partners and family members taken from us all too soon by this devastating virus. May we never forget that what we have achieved over the last 30 years is because of them.”
