HIV is a local issue but island patients' voices go unheard

HIV is an issue for the Bailiwick, according to one health expert.

On the eve of World Aids Day, Guernsey's sexual health services' Dr Nikki Brink (pictured) said some people still questioned whether HIV was relevant to Guernsey.

'The answer is a definite yes, but the voices of people living with HIV in the Bailiwick are often not heard,' she said.

'World Aids Day provides an opportunity to reflect and take action. People with HIV should be able to live free of discrimination and with access to the healthcare that they require.'

She said the situation in the Bailiwick was far more optimistic and that considerable progress had been made in the provision of care offered.

Thirty-four people were diagnosed with HIV in Guernsey between 1999 and 2009. All but nine are still being cared for on-island.

Seventeen people living with HIV in Guernsey are currently on treatment for HIV with different combinations of antiretroviral therapy.

'Living with HIV in Guernsey poses unique problems and it is our hope that discussing this will contribute to dispelling some of the myths and misunderstandings,' she said.