Author Archives: Michæl McFarland Campbell

Problems using the toilet? Try squatting instead of sitting

If like me you have had problems when using the toilet, feeling a strain to evacuate waste from your body, getting all tensed up, which then makes the problem worse… well there is a solution. Squatty Potty® https://youtu.be/5P8L0r4JVpo Squatty Potty® is based in the USA, but I am sure there will be ways of getting […]

Misinformation on HIV transmission from Mirror, MEN, and GMP

Both the Mirror and the Manchester Evening News have published outrageously misinformed reports regarding a charity worker facing an anxious New Year as she waits for tests results to find out if she has contracted the disease after being assaulted on Tuesday night. —Manchester Evening News The two stories have similar headlines: Charity worker spat at […]

Shocked at being told I had “the plague”

So it is 2016 and last night as the old year was preparing to leave, I got told that I had the plague: the gay plague. I thought that this sort of language was only to be expected from conservatives in the US like Walter Kubitz in Virginia. But this was in Ireland, from someone […]

“My HIV. Our Problem.”

Andrew Keates has made this documentary about living with HIV. I don’t know him personally, but a friend does. He asks himself questions that he has been asked before and then answers them. Who gave you HIV? Don’t you just pop a pill a day and everything’s fine? How’s your love life? https://youtu.be/jXJzIQ0lRZk He tells […]

Change of meds…

Eviplera to Stribild Today I am making the change from Eviplera to a newer drug which is four-in-one called Stribild. It is made up of four drugs: elvitegravir which is a type of antiretroviral called an integrase inhibitor; conicistat a “pharmacokinetic enhancer” which boosts levels of elvitegravir within the body, but has no activity against […]

“I Like to Party” video raises awareness of PrEP

“When straight guys have a lot of sex, they’re called studs. But when gay guys have a lot of sex, they’re called sluts.” Public Health Solutions, a human service agency based in New York City, just released a new PrEP campaign that hits all the right notes. The “I Like to Party” video showcases adult […]

“a beautiful international family of brothers, sisters, and sister-brothers.”

“I need to tell it now because we are not an ugly picture. We are a beautiful international family of brothers, sisters, and sister-brothers. I am honored to be part of that acronym, to be a man who has sex with men, and to wear that little plus sign next to my name on official […]

Talking can help your mental health

Every single one of us can experience a mental health problem. It is simply part of the rollercoaster of life. But as with HIV, there is a quite a large amount of stigma surrounding it, particularly in Irish society. It does not have to be this way, there are things that each one of us […]

36% increase in HIV diagnoses over last five years in Northern Ireland

The figures recently released by Northern Ireland’s Public Health Agency show some worrying figures. I sincerely hope that the Health Minister, Simon Hamilton MLA, and the Health Committee of the Northern Ireland Assembly take them to heart and work to make them better. The figures show that in the ten years since 2004, Northern Ireland […]

51% of new HIV diagnoses were made at a late stage.

“Statistics show that 51% of new HIV diagnoses were made at a late stage. If you’ve put yourself at risk it is really important to get tested for HIV to ensure an early diagnosis. People respond better to treatment when they are diagnosed at an earlier stage of disease.”—Dr Neil Irvine, Consultant in Public Health, […]

Unlicensed Cambodian doctor jailed for 25 years for spreading HIV

After Cambodian authorities detected an epidemic of HIV when they started testing a community in the Battambbang province, in the remote north-west of the country. They found more than 270 cases including people in their 80s and one who was aged 2 years. Today an unlicensed medical practitioner was convicted of murder, and sentenced to […]

HIV self-testing kits to be legal in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland’s Health Minister, Simon Hamilton MLA, has announced his intention to lift the restrictions on HIV self-testing in Northern Ireland. Currently anyone wishing to test for HIV has to go to a health professional at a GP surgery, sexual health clinic or Genitourinary Medicine (GUM) clinic. Self-testing involves an individual taking a sample, performing […]

Tim Farron MP, Lib Dem Leader’s message for #WAD2015

https://youtu.be/n3MD3RD2pIU Tim Farron MP tells of his first World AIDS Day back in 1988. Today he’s wearing a ribbon and working in Parliament for all living with HIV. Thank you Tim. (The video was filmed before new stats about undiagnosed HIV rates were released. The rate is now in one in six.)

LibDem calls for PrEP via UK NHS on #WAD2015

On World AIDS Day the Liberal Democrat spokesman for Health, Norman Lamb called for the HIV-preventative drug Truvada or Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis to be made available via the UK’s National Health Service. With more than 6,000 more people becoming infected with HIV in Britian in 2013, he says that it is clear that efforts to combat […]

Updated: Response from Bailiff of Jersey over #WAD collection

All around the world people are using World AIDS Day (1 December)as a time to raise funds for HIV charities and to raise awareness of HIV in their communities. However this is not going to happen on the Channel Island of Jersey. I have been told that the Bailiff of Jersey has said that Only […]

Examining the WHO guidelines on HIV testing services

The consolidated World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on HIV testing services (HTS), published in July, recommend standardised HTS for correct diagnosis. David Rowlands examines the document, with particular regard to HIV testing in the UK.

#WADirl launched by Irish Health Minister

The Irish Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar TD last week launched the first ever five-day national World AIDS Day campaign in Ireland. This campaign is developed by NGOs and statutory bodies across Ireland in partnership with the HSE Sexual Health & Crisis Pregnancy Programme. The focus of the Irish campaign is Solidarity with all people living […]

World AIDS Day everyday to reduce stigma

The stigma that people with HIV routinely face discourages many from testing and others from being open about their HIV status.— Matthew Hodson | @matthew_hodson This is a major problem in fighting HIV. I still maintain that until more people living with HIV stand up and come out, tell their friends and family, colleagues and […]

#StandUpToHIV – AVERT campaign tackles fears of HIV

46% of people living with HIV do not know they have it. Stigma surrounding HIV remains one of the biggest reasons people are not testing.  https://youtu.be/evHYzjbdRPk To mark World AIDS Day (1 December 2015) HIV charity AVERT has launched an animation to help people overcome fears and worries about HIV – something which is stopping […]

HIV treatment for all living with HIV says EACS. What do you think?

The new European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) HIV clinical guidelines were released at the 15th European AIDS Conference which brings Europe into line with the rest of the world by recommending HIV treatment upon diagnosis for everyone living with HIV. Complete a short survey on your views on this.