Health Promotion Agency supports World AIDS Day.

Today the Health Promotion Agency (HPA) added its support to World AIDS Day, the annual event in the UNAIDS calendar which aims to raise awareness of this deadly disease.

Dr Brian Gaffney, Chief Executive of the HPA, said: “This year the theme of World AIDS Day is to reduce stigmatisation and discrimination against people living with the disease. It is a sad fact that even now, decades on from when the disease was first discovered, people are still ignorant of how HIV/AIDS can be transmitted and continue to treat sufferers badly. Many of those infected have caught the disease through blood transfusions, or women who did not know they were pregnant have passed it on to their babies. This day is to encourage people to be less prejudiced in their attitude to those who have the disease and ultimately to encourage everyone to be vigilant about their own sexual health.”

HIV /AIDS is just one of a number of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) that can have devastating health implications for a person. In an effort to raise awareness of how easily these infections can be transmitted, the HPA has an ongoing poster advertising campaign promoting safer sex. The information contained in the posters is clear and factual in an effort to ensure people are well informed so their sexual behaviour does not put their health or even their lives at risk.

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Further information:
The HPA’s public information campaign targets 18-30 year olds by placing posters on the back of toilet doors in pubs and clubs throughout Northern Ireland in selected venues that are popular with the age group. For more information contact Jenny Dougan or David Thompson on 028 9031 1611