Take the T out of Stigma

Faith leaders from Edinburgh and the Lothians were treated to afternoon tea at the Caledonian Hilton Hotel in Edinburgh last Wednesday. The event ‘Take the T out of stigma’ was part of an initiative to help faith leaders to understand some of the issues for people who live with HIV.

Some of the findings from a research project ‘The Stigma Index Research’ were presented which included comments from people living with HIV. Comments were positive, such as ‘My church knows that I am HIV positive and it’s not an issue and they don’t talk about it’ and negative comments such as ‘She told her very supportive clergyman in confidence, and after that he stopped her taking communion. He also suggested she shouldn’t touch something else... she felt dreadful.'

Speaking at the event were Vincent Chippriott, Diana Inegbenebor and Adrienne Seed. Vincent was one of the researchers on the stigma index report, and spoke about some of the findings. Diana works for African Health Policy Network (AHPN) in London and spoke about AHPN’s work with faith communities in London and particularly about the success of a focus group approach. Adrienne was the final speaker and is an artist and writer who runs a peer support group in Blackburn Lancashire. She recently spoke on Radio 4’s woman’s hour and shared something of her personal story at the faith leader’s event, particularly highlighting the risks to women in their late 40s and 50s who are not seen as a group particularly at risk of contracting HIV. (You can read Adrienne's story on our blog by clicking here)

The event was a great success and the feedback was overwhelmingly good and attendees felt better informed and more confident to speak about HIV with members of their own faith community.