The manager of HIV+ people's support organisation Body Positive says new figures showing New Zealand's highest-ever rate of HIV infections last year are "no surprise to us." "We've been aware of an increase in demand for all our services recently," Bruce Kilmister tells GayNZ.com. "We've had increased pressure on us to match increasing demand, while we're coping with reduced funding. "We're struggling, but meeting the challenge." Talking to people accessing Body Positive's support services makes Kilmister aware of current trends around how and why HIV is being transmitted. "We're well aware of a change in culture impacting on condom use," he says. "People in the older age bracket think it is acceptable to negotiate sex without condoms and are willing to take a level of risk. "I'm also amazed at younger people's naivety and lack of information about sexual health," he adds. "Young gay men believe they are not at risk of HIV if they are in monogamous relationships. They have complete faith in their partnerships, and in the case of 'slip ups' with a person outside of their relationship, they often fail to disclose the unsafe sex they might have had - putting their partner at risk. Studies have shown that the majority of HIV infections occur within relationships."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Monday, 23rd March 2009 - 4:58pm