Tag: Health navigation

Cross-boundary PrEP collaboration: A model to emulate

Since January 1, 2018, eligible British Columbians have been able to receive HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) at no cost, but despite this coverage many still have restricted access to PrEP, especially people living in remote areas of the province. The barriers are many-fold and include persistent stigma, lack of access to healthcare providers and sexual health clinics, lack of awareness, individual discomfort accessing sexual healthcare and lack of transportation to pick up medication or to visit labs for ongoing testing.

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What role do seniors play in the HIV community: A personal perspective

To understand the breadth and complexity of aging with HIV, one really needs to experience it. Much of the dialogue, though, is driven by those who haven’t. That is particularly apparent with respect to issues affecting our elders. And that is why my interest is not so much in HIV and aging as in HIV and the aged. In other words, the destination is as important as the journey.

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HIV and life insurance: A welcome change but questions remain

Historically, people living with HIV in Canada have been excluded from access to life insurance. In recent years, however, both Manulife and Sun Life have started accepting applications from people living with HIV, now that HIV is widely recognized as a manageable chronic illness. Nevertheless, this significant change in policy is not well-known within the HIV sector. How can we change that and how can we facilitate access to life insurance for people living with HIV? With these two questions in mind, we at Realize and the Canadian Positive People Network (CPPN) surveyed our members and the insurance sector to...

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Connected patients, connected providers: Delivering comprehensive, coordinated, team-based care to people living with HIV in Canada

Thanks to effective anti-HIV treatment, HIV has evolved into a chronic illness. However, people living with HIV often today also live with other physical and mental health conditions, which can be difficult to cope with, especially for those also coping with difficult socio-economic circumstances. To provide quality care to people living with HIV and other long-term medical and social conditions, health-care providers not only need to ensure  that people living with HIV are engaged in quality health care, but we also need to enhance the capacity of Canadian HIV clinics to integrate and coordinate additional resources. By integrating and coordinating...

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