A resource guide on HIV health promotion with African community groups in England (1999)
Statistics from the Public Health Laboratory Service show that African communities are the second largest social group living with, and affected by, HIV/AIDS in the UK. The most seriously affected communities are from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe. However, because the pattern of the epidemic in Africa is evolving, prevention efforts in England need to reflect new priorities as they arise. The majority of Africans (in the UK) with HIV infection currently live in the London boroughs. Most transmission is attributed to sex between men and women, however transmission from mothers to babies is of increasing concern.
Throughout the 1990s a number of London health authorities have targeted specific African community groups as part of their HIV health promotion work. In 1997 the Department of Health, in recognition of the need to fund a co-ordinated approach, contracted Enfield and Haringey Health Authority (EHHA) to manage a national programme of work.
Research has shown the need for initiatives to be African-led, or undertaken in partnership with community organisations. By following a community development model, the needs of the various religious, tribal or national groups can be addressed. At local level, issues such as refugee status, late HIV diagnosis and access to culturally specific services and resources require special consideration. The African voluntary sector and the African HIV Steering Group have been involved at all stages in the Department of Health’s national programme of work. To date, this has included the development and distribution of printed resources, a massmedia campaign and a weekly pilot radio broadcast. All aspects of the programme are now being evaluated and discussions are afoot regarding future work.
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For further information please visit A resource guide on HIV health promotion with African community groups in England (1999).