Why the latest change to blood donor deferral policy is so important

Back in the 1980s the UK Governmentalong with a whole host of other countries introduced a lifetime ban on blood donations by men who have sex with men (MSM) in response to the emergence and fear created around the AIDS pandemic. This blanket ban remained in place in Northern Ireland until as recently as 2016 when the then Health Minister, …

New cases are down, but stigma remains the underlying challenge this World AIDS Day

The latest statistics for HIV in Northern Ireland are in and its really encouraging news. There has been a noticeable decrease in the number of new cases for the 2019-year, some fantastic news to cap a tricky year for HIV support services. During 2019, there were 52 new diagnoses of HIV in NI, down from 84 recorded the previous year. …