Page 1672 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 15 May 2019
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comprehensive range of services to ensure that affected individuals receive the appropriate care, management and support. So, too, we must work to eliminate stigma and discrimination and encourage the conversation in the community about the importance of sexual health.
The transmission of BBVs continues to occur in the ACT. Notification rates for hepatitis B and C and HIV have remained relatively stable in the ACT. However, following national trends, it has been noted that we are seeing the rates of notifications of some STIs increase in the ACT. Chlamydia is the most commonly diagnosed STI in the ACT, and notification rates have been steadily increasing since 2007. While gonorrhoea and syphilis are diagnosed less frequently, notification rates have shown a marked increase since 2015. I am aware that there are other jurisdictions with increasing prevalence of some of these diseases, notably in the north of the country, which is causing concern.
If not diagnosed early and treated appropriately, STIs and BBVs can cause long-term health complications, which in the case of bloodborne viruses can be life threatening. Prevention, alongside early detection and treatment, of STIs and BBVs is important to achieving good health outcomes overall for individuals and our community. Improvements in treatment for HIV mean that today the life expectancy for someone who is living with HIV on antiretroviral treatment and responding to treatment is no different to that for the general population. It is only in recent years that there has been a significant breakthrough with new, highly effective medicines that can offer a cure for people living with hepatitis C. This has been a really remarkable improvement in the past couple of years and one that I know Hepatitis ACT has been working very hard in the community on.
Prevention is a very good option, followed by early detection. That is why it is important that we collectively work as a community to mitigate these infections and viruses. The ACT government takes a proactive approach to offering sexual health services and preventive health programs. Through the Canberra Sexual Health Centre, people can access free and confidential STI treatment and testing. The ACTÂ government also supports various community organisations to provide counselling and advice services and specialised testing, many of which are specifically noted in the motion and have been spoken about today.
I will outline briefly the services we provide and support. They include the Canberra Sexual Health Centre in Garran, where people can get access to free STI treatment and testing. It serves as the region’s largest HIV outpatient service. The Canberra Sexual Health Centre has a well-established outreach program at venues right across Canberra to support priority population access to the service, including for young people, LGBTIQ and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members, sex workers and people who inject drugs.
Services are provided by the AIDS Action Council, where members of the community can receive information, STI testing, counselling and advice; and Sexual Health and Family Planning ACT, or SHFPACT, where users of these services can receive testing, treatment, counselling, and advice on general sexual and reproductive health issues. Hepatitis ACT provides information and resources to help people in the
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