Free HIV testing for World Aids Day

In 2013, there were an estimated 24.7 million cases in the region, according to the World Health Organization.

In 2014, 473 persons had tested positive for HIV in the district which included 469 adults and four children.

Craig McClure, UNICEF’s associate director and chief of HIV and AIDS, says most teens who die have simply slipped through the cracks – a fact that shows a fatal, and utterly preventable, flaw in governments’ and aid agencies’ treatment plans.

Getting infected with HIV is not the end of the world. Although new infections are falling overall, they are rising among adolescents, coinciding with an increase in risky behaviour, such as multiple sexual partners and inconsistent condom use. There is no cure for HIV.

“It is fast and simple – and one of the best weapons we have to stop the spread of HIV”.

The new guideline stresses that in order to effectively implement the recommendations, countries will need to ensure that testing and treatment of HIV infection are readily available and those undergoing treatment aresupported to adhere to recommended regimens and retained in care. The cost for prevention is but a small fraction of this. Gay men still bear the brunt of new infections.

Despite the setbacks, there has been also progress in the battle with HIV/AIDS. And even those considered “at risk” are among our friends, our families, our neighbors and our loved ones.

To break the epidemic and prevent it from rebounding, we must act on all fronts.

Only 10 Asia Pacific countries allow young people to access HIV testing and related services without parental permission.

“In the United Kingdom an estimated 103,700 people live with HIV every day of the year and 17 per cent of these are undiagnosed while 40 per cent are diagnosed late”.

The breathless media coverage of actor Charlie Sheen’s revelation that he has contracted HIV should serve as a stark reminder, as if we needed one, that the virus that causes AIDS is very real and still very much a threat.

SDLP Foyle MP Mark Durkan has taken a HIV test at Westminster to mark World Aids Day. People need to know their HIV status and reduce their risk.

We are grateful to be part of a community that supports this work and hope that together we can continue to work toward ending the HIV pandemic.