Last month, HIV testing week rolled out across the country. The HIV testing week campaign run by the Terrence Higgins Trust backed by Dr. Christian Jensen, aims to raise awareness of HIV and increase the number of gay & bisexual men and members from the Black African community taking an HIV test.
But what does the data tell us? Who is most at risk? Who is increasingly becoming at risk?
Data released by the ONS shows that men as a whole accept more HIV screenings than females when asked. If you interrogate the data a little more you can see uptake levels across different groups. For instance, the rate of HIV screenings accepted by men who have sex with men (MSM) has increased from 81% to 87.3% between 2010 and 2014, as has an increase in screenings accepted by individuals who are Afro-Caribbean (average increase by 3.8% across ‘Black African’, ‘Black Caribbean’ and ‘Black other’ across the same period).
The high percentage of HIV screenings accepted by MSM and Black African individuals can most likely be credited to heavy campaigning over the past decade, with targeted campaigns being rolled out. The Terrence Higgins Trust launched the “It Starts With Me” campaign for HIV testing week, which targets MSM and Black African individuals. A brilliant campaign. And with around 3360 MSM and 1233 Black Africans diagnosed with HIV last year, a targeted campaign is a must.
However, a clear demographic who do not take part in HIV screenings is females, with heterosexual females in particular declining to take part in screening for HIV. Data (2010-2014) shows that among heterosexual females aged 45 to 64 years old, there has been a decline in screenings with only 61.6% of heterosexual females accepting a HIV screening when asked. For heterosexual females aged over 65 years old, this statistic is lower - 44.8% in 2014 (but this has risen from 2010 by 9.1%).
Why is this interesting? Well, data released from Public Health England shows a steady increase of women aged 45-54 years old in the UK who are diagnosed with HIV – rising from 88 cases in 2000 to a whooping 259 in 2014 (an increase by almost 300%) so it is not a status that does not affect heterosexual women. Why are fewer women accepting a screen when asked? Do they believe this is not a condition that could affect them? With targeted campaigned at MSM and Black African men, women might feel this is something that won't touch them. For us here at Social Change UK it raises more questions than answers. Do women in their 50's use contraception and if not, why not?
Is there an issue?
Looking back at previous efforts on sexual health, it’s clear to see that there are targeted campaigns for MSM and Black African communities; the latest campaign by the Terrence Higgins Trust is a testament to that. The momentum is positive and it also tackles stigma, educates and promotes positive behavioural change.
But it pays to look at the figures regularly as the tides are changing, and public health departments need to realise that more prevention work needs to be done elsewhere. We don't want to be in a position in years to come when this generation of women have been dismissed as not important or large enough to target. The figures might be small but if they continue to increase a snowball effect could ensue. A report released by the National Aids Trust shows that funding for HIV prevention in 2013/14 only targeted MSM and Black African men and women, with a 65:35 ratio respectively, with large portions of funding allocated to targeted interventions. As well as this, there is also prevention work being undertaken with those who have tested negative for HIV (increasing in London in 2014/15 by 2% from 2013/14).
Our question of the week is therefore this: Due to a heavy focus on MSM and the Black African community, are middle-aged women being left behind? If you’d like to find out more about how we can help with targeted sexual health campaigns, get in touch with us to see how we can help you.