Living with HIV in the UK Produced by

What do you think of when you hear HIV?

Do you think of…

Think it doesn’t affect you? There are over 80,000 people living with HIV in the UK A third of them don’t know their diagnosis More than 1 in 10 of new diagnoses in 2007 were amongst 16-24 year olds At least 20,000 children live in a family affected by HIV

Quick facts about HIV HIV is a virus that attacks the body’s immune system In the UK the main ways HIV is passed on are: Unprotected sex between a man and a woman, or between two men Sharing needles for injecting drugs You cannot get HIV from day-to-day contact such as spitting, sharing cups, toilets, holding hands or kissing

Living with HIV In the UK, treatment is available to keep people with HIV healthy People on treatment can live long, healthy lives But treatment can be difficult to take and have serious side-effects You can’t tell someone has HIV just by looking at them

Speaking out If you have HIV, it can be hard telling other people Some people are scared of people with HIV They think they might get HIV from them So they don’t want to be friends, or work with them, or live next door to them But we know you can’t get HIV from day-to-day contact

Discrimination Discrimination means being treated badly because of something about you It could be because of race, religion or having HIV People with HIV can face discrimination in different places, such as Schools Work GPs or dentists Or even from friends and family

Sara’s story Sara was about to start primary school Her mum told the school that Sara was HIV-positive The teachers were very worried about teaching a child with HIV and said they didn’t want her in their class Would it matter to you if someone in your class had HIV?

Protection The law makes it illegal to discriminate against people living with HIV This protects people from discrimination in: Work Schools Colleges Services Which means Sara should be able to go to school just like anyone else

Make a difference Prejudice and discrimination come out of ignorance Tell other people about HIV so they know the facts Make this school a positive place that supports everyone

Presentation produced by November 2008 For more information visit www.worldaidsday.org