Halifax

HIV Testing and Disclosure: A Public Health or Legal Matter?

12:00pm
- 1:00pm
Tuesday January 15 2013

Synopsis: Recent HIV surveillance data indicate there are over 60,000 Canadians living with HIV, approximately 25% of whom are unaware of their HIV status (PHAC, 2012). As indicated in the current literature on HIV testing, knowing one’s HIV status can serve as the impetus for timely access to care, treatment and support, as well as the prevention of the onward transmission of the virus (Gahagan et al, 2010; Gahagan et al, 2011). The focus of this talk is in relation to the recent Supreme Court decision on the issue of criminalization of HIV non-disclosure and the public health and health promotion implications of this decision on HIV testing, particularly on the lives of women in Canada.

Biography: Jacqueline Gahagan, PhD is Professor of Health Promotion and Head of the Health Promotion Division in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University. Dr. Gahagan is also Director of the Gender and Health Promotion Studies Unit (GAHPS Unit) which focuses on intersectionality of gender and other key determinants of health on HIV/STI/Hep C health outcomes. Jacqueline holds cross appointments in Community Health and Epidemiology, International Development Studies, Gender Studies, Occupational Therapy, and Nursing and teaches courses in measurement and evaluation, community health promotion, health promotion theory, and women’s health and the environment at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Dr. Gahagan is a member of the editorial board for several peer-reviewed journals, including Health Care for Women International, Sexual Health, and the Canadian Journal of Public Health.

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