News / Lerwick buildings light up red to mark world AIDS day
A NUMBER of buildings in Lerwick are set to light up in red to mark World AIDS Day today (1 December).
The Town Hall, Mareel and the Clickimin Broch will take part in the awareness-raising campaign.
The local OPEN Peer Education project will also do work with Shetland’s young people to speak about HIV.
The theme of this year’s World AIDS Day is ‘Let’s End It’ and it focuses on tackling isolation, stigma and HIV transmission.
Public health specialist Wendy Hatrick said local people should get tested if they feel they may have been at risk of contracting HIV.
“Talking about why some of our iconic local and national buildings are glowing red this Friday is good, and especially if that can lead on to conversations about AIDS and the real risks of contracting HIV through unprotected sex or sharing injecting equipment,” she said.
“Stay safe, use condoms and/or new injecting equipment. If you have been at risk, ever, be it through sharing a needle a few times, decades ago or having unprotected sex whilst on holiday, get tested.
“A diagnosis of HIV means treatment options are yours and so too is a long healthy life.”
NHS Shetland consultant in public health medicine Dr Susan Laidlaw said there are a small number of people in the isles who have been diagnosed with HIV.
“Having a blood test is the only way to find out if you have HIV, and the earlier it is diagnosed the earlier treatment can start,” she added.
“We now have very effective treatments which mean people can live with HIV for many years, just like many other long term conditions, rather than dying young as we saw in the 1980s.
“Of course ideally we would like to prevent folk getting HIV in the first place; and there are ways to reduce the risk of catching the virus such as using condoms and not sharing drug injecting equipment.
“There is now also effective medication (known as PrEP) that people who are at high risk of exposure to HIV can take to prevent them getting the virus.”
Confidential advice, testing and treatment is available through GP surgeries and also through the local sexual health and wellbeing clinic.
This clinic is open every Monday between 6.30pm – 8.30pm in the outpatients department of the Gilbert Bain Hospital. Testing is anonymous and records will be kept separate from other hospital records and GP records.
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