Australian Research Council Linkage Project success for SiREN and partners. The "Reducing health disparities for culturally and linguistically diverse peoples" project aims to better understand factors of poor STI and BBV health outcomes in migrants. This is a multi-jurisdictional project that will be conducted with a number of partners. More information on this project will be released soon.

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SiREN has also been successful in securing another PhD scholarship which will be in the area of HIV and mobility. 

 

Could it be HIV: New Video for primary care providers produced by VAC. Could it be HIV features the story of Abby Landy, whose story is all-too-common for the many individuals who are given a late HIV diagnosis. Produced by the Victorian AIDS Council (VAC), Could it be HIV encourages clinicians and doctors to 'consider HIV'. This clip also features Professor Jenny Hoy from Alfred Health. Click here to watch the video.

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PBAC recommend PrEP for PBS. Recently, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) announced their recommendation that Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). PBAC's recommendation will allow people to access PrEP through their GP, making it more affordable to populations identified as most at-risk of acquiring HIV. Read more here.

 

RESEARCH

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HIV outcomes among migrants from low-income and middle-income countries living in high-income countries: a review of recent evidence (Ross et al., 2018). This study examined the research on HIV outcomes for migrants from low-income and middle-income countries living in high-income countries. The literature review revealed that HIV is often acquired post migration and that migrant populations were associated with less favourable HIV outcomes than native populations. Factors leading to poorer HIV outcomes included stigma, limited access to care and communication barriers. Read more.

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Peer support critical to HIV prevention amongst migrant sex workers (Febres-Cordero et al., 2018). This study explored the influence of peer support upon HIV prevention amongst migrant sex workers in Mexico-Guatemala border communities. Peer support was found to be crucial to decreasing social isolation, increasing access to HIV/STI prevention resources and knowledge, and reducing workplace violence. Whilst challenges to accessing peer support were identified, peer-led interventions offer a promising approach to improving the health and safety of migrant sex workers. Read more.

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Culture and constructions of sexual health and health care seeking behaviour in Australia: a methodological study (Dune et al., 2017). An Australian study investigated perceptions of health care seeking behaviour and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) from the perspective of 1.5 generation migrants in Australia. They found that constructions of SRH often continued to be influenced by a migrant's country of origin post migration, although this was closely linked to the individual's age at the time of migration. The study discusses the complexities involved in delivering cross-cultural SRH education and highlights the need for further research into the SRH amongst migrant youth. Read more.