HYDES’ HOPES

BY MICHAEL HYDES

Chipping Away

I have to wonder how different the last 40 years would have been if HIV had broken out among the general population instead of some of the most marginalised groups. How many lives could have been saved if the kind of resources thrown at Covid over the last 18 months had been thrown at HIV in the same way? I am so glad that we have effective treatments, that PrEP continues to make a real difference in people’s lives, and that there may well be an effective vaccine on the horizon. However, it’s been 40 years since HIV was first documented (1981), whereas in the case of Covid we had an effective vaccine that had been tested and approved within a year.

Of course, I’m grateful that Covid is less a threat now than it was a year ago. Although, as I write this, people are still being hospitalised and still dying, albeit in reduced numbers. It isn’t over yet. But then HIV isn’t an illness of the past either.

“How many lives could have been saved if the kind of resources thrown at Covid over the last 18 months had been thrown at HIV in the same way?”

In the UK there are presently just over 105,000 people living with HIV and receiving treatments. Around two-thirds are male, and around a third female, and a small number non-binary. In general, infection isn’t through those who know they are infected and receiving treatment, but through those who are infected but are unaware of their HIV status. You can see why testing is as crucial now as it ever has been.

There are some amazing groups in Brighton offering support. The Lawson Unit and the Sussex Beacon both offer medical support. Lunch Positive, Terrence Higgins Trust and Peer Action all offer peer support. My church, the Village MCC, offers positive and affirming spiritual support. The Martin Fisher Foundation (Brighton & Hove) continues to work hard to lower transmission rates, the goal being zero transmission. Five years ago, the goal they set out was to ensure that 90% of people living with HIV in Brighton & Hove would be aware of their status, that 90% of people be on treatment, and that 90% of people with HIV on treatment be unable to pass the infection on to others due to untraceable levels of virus in the blood stream. More info: www.themartinfisherfoundation. org.

By the end of 2020 they had surpassed expectations and now 94% of people living with HIV in Brighton & Hove know their status, of whom 99% are on effective treatment, 99% of whom are unable to pass the infection on to others due to untraceable levels of virus in their blood stream - great work! And wouldn’t it be wonderful if the government rolled out such a scheme nationwide?

The reality is that we still face prejudice and fear 40 years on. By no means at the level it once was, but it is still there. Homophobia and misogyny continue to wreak havoc in society, and although things are changing, the attitudes around HIV are a symptom of an even deeper problem that we continue to chip away at.

Oh, for a world without HIV transmission. It is possible. We can do it! And in Brighton & Hove I believe that we will. But whether the will exists to tackle the problem worldwide; well, the jury is still out on that one.

More info on the Village MCC: www.thevillagemcc.org