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HIV rate more than just a healthcare issue

Oct 13, 2017 | 5:00 PM

HIV diagnosis rates are rising in both Saskatchewan and Prince Albert, but while front-line workers are concerned, they said there are reasons to be optimistic as well.

According to the Government of Saskatchewan, the provincial HIV rate in 2015 was roughly 14 per 100,000 people, a dramatic increase from the previous year’s rate of 9.8 per 100,000. Saskatchewan’s rate has been higher than the Canada-wide rate since 2006, and was 2.4 times the national rate in 2015. Most of the new cases originated in in Saskatoon, Regina and Prince Albert. Men represented 62.5 per cent of new cases and roughly 75 per cent of the newly-diagnosed patients self-identified as Aboriginal.

Steven Mah, who manages Access Place in Prince Albert, said he regularly works with clients who are HIV positive. Mah said part of the reason why there have been more confirmed HIV cases recently is the health region’s ongoing campaign to increase testing rates.

“Since 2007 our testing numbers have dramatically increased to roughly 70 per cent,” Mah said. “That’s part of why you will see more new incident rates.”

The increased HIV rate could actually be seen as a positive indicator, Mah said, as it shows better testing rates. An official diagnosis means the patient can begin treatment instead of potentially passing the disease on to others, Mah said, which is also a positive effect of increased diagnoses.

The issue of HIV goes far beyond healthcare alone, Mah said. Many social factors help determine a person’s risk for infection, as well how they will respond to treatment. Mah said the health region has been participating in more outreach programs to help address the social factors impacting public health.

“We work often with community-based organizations to aid individuals get into housing [and] support them socially,” he said. “An individual may have an addiction, and we understand that in order to be successful in the HIV treatment we need to address, often times, underlying causes.”

In addition to the outreach efforts, Mah said Access Place began a methadone program specifically for HIV-positive clients, which is meant to help the individual clients overcome their addictions while lowering the rates of needle-sharing and preventing future transmission of the disease. Access Place also operates the city’s needle-exchange program to ensure users if intravenous drugs have access to sterile supplies.

While he acknowledged there is still a long road ahead, Mah said he remains optimistic for the future. HIV awareness and testing have both risen dramatically in recent years, he said, and HIV-positive clients are now better equipped to manage their illness and better served by their healthcare providers.

Dr. Khami Chokani, medical officer with the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region, said treatment for HIV has advanced by great leaps in recent years.

“HIV is not a death sentence,” Chokani said. “Now there’s more options, there’s less side-effects and there’s a better chance of actually getting virus suppression.”

Chokani said that through viral suppression drugs, many patients are able to reduce their viral loads to levels where the disease cannot be detected with common tests. These patients almost never develop AIDS, he said, and are much less likely to pass on the infection.

Keeping the HIV rate to a minimum, Chokani said, is everyone’s responsibility, and it starts with knowing your own HIV status.

Those living with an HIV diagnosis have a responsibility to enter treatment in order to avoid passing the infection on, he said, while those who know themselves to be HIV-negative can help by promoting awareness, fighting against the stigma, and protecting themselves from potential infection.

“Each one of us has a part to play,” he said.

 

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews