Women* & HIV

*Women is used to represent a wide range of identities including but not limited to, Trans and Cis women, women with Trans experience, as well as folks on the Trans-feminine spectrum.

HIV/AIDS Resources & Community Health offers a program which focuses specifically on the HIV prevention needs of women and femme folks in our community. The program aims to build local community capacity within our community to respond to women and femme folks’ HIV and AIDS prevention needs and to improve the quality of life for women and femme folks living with or affected by HIV and AIDS.

Providing women with HIV prevention initiatives and programming is vital for our community. Ontario has one of the highest numbers of HIV cases among women of all ages in comparison to all other provinces and territories. The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates that there are between 5,100 and 8,000 women living with HIV in Ontario.1 Data over the past 10 years has consistently shown that women account for 1 in 5 new HIV diagnoses in Ontario.

Social determinants of health significantly impact the lives of individuals and communities, putting some people at higher systemic risk for HIV than others. We are working to address these inequalities in our work and our community.

In Ontario research shows that of all new HIV diagnosis among women: approximately 48% are from countries where HIV is endemic, approximately 33% contracted HIV through heterosexual sex, approximately 18% contracted HIV through injection drug use and approximately 50% of new HIV infections among indigenous people are women.2,3

Want to learn more about how you can support women and femme folks impacted by HIV in our community?

Reach out to the Women’s Community Development Coordinator at ARCH!

Check out all WHAI-Women and HIV/AIDS Initiative resources here:

http://www.whai.ca/resources

References:

  1. Gilbert, M. (2015). Women and HIV in Ontario: The facts in brief. Ontario HIV Epidemiology and Surveillance Initiative. Ontario HIV Treatment Network.
  2. View from the Front Lines. (2015). Annual Summary and Analysis of Data Provided by Community-Based HIV/AIDS Services in Ontario. Ontario Community HIV and AIDS Reporting Tool (OCHART), Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care and the Public Health Agency of Canada, Ontario Region, 2015.
  3. Ontario Aboriginal HIV/AIDS Strategy. (2016). Retrieved from www.oahas.org.