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In the eyes of Indigenous people: The link between colonialism and hepatitis C, and the need for historic trauma-informed care

 April 15, 2019 •  By Sadeem Fayed and Dr. Alexandra King

Why do First Nations, Métis and Inuit in Canada carry such an unfair burden of hepatitis C in Canada? It is estimated that hepatitis C among Indigenous people is five-times higher than non-Indigenous Canadians. In particular, Indigenous women represent almost half of all hepatitis C cases in their communities, a much higher proportion than among the non-Indigenous Canadian population. Young Indigenous people (24 years and under) represent 70% to 80% of hepatitis C infections among people who inject drugs in Canada.

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Bring testing to the people

 April 2, 2019 •  By Amanda Giacomazzo

Editor’s note, January 2022: Some of the approaches and technologies highlighted here are still only available in some regions of Canada. Additionally, HIV self-testing/home-based testing has now been approved for use in Canada. Canada has signed on to global targets to eliminate HIV and hepatitis C as public health threats by 2030. While ambitious, these targets are now a realistic possibility thanks to the effectiveness of modern medications. HIV treatment can suppress the virus so successfully that HIV-positive Canadians who start treatment early can have life expectancies similar to their HIV-negative peers. This also prevents the transmission of HIV to...

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Gay men, substance use and harm reduction: it’s time to act

 February 4, 2019 •  By Dane Griffiths

Harm reduction and gay men’s HIV prevention could be considered two historic elements in our HIV response that have long stood separate from one another. Traditionally, HIV prevention with gay men focused on sexual risk, while harm reduction focused on risks associated with injection drug use. Both approaches have evolved over the decades and some might argue that safer sex is a form of harm reduction, but in the context of drug use, there has been little focus given to harm reduction in the context of gay men’s sexual health.

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Comment la PrEP et la charge virale indétectable redéfinissent-elles les relations sociales des hommes gais et bisexuels?

 January 14, 2019 •  By Gabriel Girard

Indétectable = Intransmissible, PrEP, Traitement comme prévention… Si ces approches font aujourd’hui consensus parmi les experts communautaires et scientifiques du VIH, leur appropriation par un plus large public reste encore incertaine. Dans la communauté gaie, ce nouveau contexte de la prévention suscite encore des résistances ou des questionnements : il suffit d’engager la conversation sur le sujet, en ligne ou dans un bar, pour s’en apercevoir!

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