HIV-related stigma remains a significant issue for people living with HIV who can face discrimination, harassment, and internalised shame. This can affect people’s mental health and acts as a barrier to accessing vital services.
In the journey towards reducing stigma, NHS Humber Health Partnership is proud to have received national recognition in becoming a ‘HIV Confident’ organisation.
This follows 12-months of in-depth work towards gaining the prestigious charter mark, which is a UK-based accredited programme developed by the National AIDS Trust, aidsmap and Positivity UK to combat stigma and discrimination. Its aim is to enable organisations – primarily NHS Trusts, businesses, and local councils – to ensure a supportive environment for employees and patients living with HIV.
Dr Katie Hodgson, Principal Clinical Psychologist in the HIV Psychology Service, who led on the project, said:
“Becoming a HIV Confident organisation is a huge achievement for the group. Stigma and discrimination within healthcare settings does still occur and it is the greatest barrier towards people accessing testing, treatment and living well with HIV.
“We all have a responsibility to educate ourselves and support the long-term commitment of the group to create spaces where people living with HIV feel respected, want to work, and receive care.”
Dr Kate Adams, Consultant in Infectious Diseases, said:
“Despite the fact that HIV is now a completely manageable condition, some people, including NHS staff, still hold tight to all the old myths and stigma. We know from feedback from our patients they can be made to feel really uncomfortable accessing care because of the way some staff treat them on the basis of their HIV diagnosis.
“The HIV Confident programme is a really important way to begin to replace these myths with the truth and up-to-date knowledge about current practice all with the aim of improving the care we give our patients.
“By signing up to becoming a HIV Confident organisation, our staff have shown they have a desire to continually learn and give our patients the best care possible.”
To achieve the status, an internal survey was conducted to understand staff beliefs and knowledge about HIV, an e-learning package was rolled out, and a comprehensive review of our policies was carried out.
Dr Adams said: “The fact we have achieved HIV Confident status in such a short space of time is a massive achievement and one which we should all be very proud of. However, this is not the end of the story, it is only the start, and as an organisation we will continually strive to improve ourselves and our knowledge about HIV, so we can continue to break down the remaining barriers and offer everyone fair, equitable and compassionate care.”
But what does it mean to our patients? Someone who accesses the service, but wants to remain anonymous, said:
“I think it is great that the staff have been working towards this charter mark. HIV is not something I feel gets talked about much anymore, but it should be. HIV should be part of the usual mandatory training rather than separate or the whole stigma issue is reinforced.
“There is a lot of ignorance and lack of awareness surrounding HIV which often perpetuates disinformation. It needs to be more widely spoken about to break down barriers and stop being such a taboo subject. Our local hospital receiving this charter mark is an important first step.”
More information can be found on the HIV Confident website.