Manitoba Government Marks World AIDS Day with Community-Led HIV and STBBI Treatment Initiatives

The Manitoba government is addressing Manitoba’s rising rates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) by supporting community-based approaches to treatment and care, Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced today. 

“World AIDS Day is a global movement to unite people in the fight against HIV and AIDS, but today many people in Manitoba face barriers to care, including health challenges such as mental health and substance use, poverty, stigma and discrimination,” said Asagwara. “Ensuring access to quality HIV and STBBI prevention and care at the community-level is a priority for our public health system and we are committed to partnering with trusted community organizations with expertise in this area and strong connections at the community-level to support those who may need access most.” 

New funding will support projects that improve access to HIV prevention and intervention including more than $527,000 to support initiatives by the Manitoba HIV Program for the current fiscal year and more than $271,000 for a mobile care service run by the Aboriginal Health and Wellness Centre (AHWC). 

“Offering an Indigenous-led mobile health-care service will be critical in improving access to HIV treatment and helping prevent STBBI transmissions,” said Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith. “Bringing these needed services directly to individuals struggling with homelessness and addictions will ensure that they are not left behind and can get the help they need in their journey.” 

The Manitoba HIV Program and partners will use funding to develop the infrastructure required to launch the Program to Access Treatment for HIV and Support (PATHS). PATHS will create several interdisciplinary teams in Winnipeg with potential to expand to Brandon and Thompson, noted the minister, to provide outreach services and intensive case management for people living with HIV who are not connected to care. The community-based teams will provide early access to antiretroviral therapy and ensure clients remain connected to treatment and other supports, said Asagwara. The program’s goals are to provide wrap-around care, offer and connect with Indigenous-led and culturally safe services, support people with HIV to ensure they regularly take HIV treatment medication and connect them with other health care or community services they may need.

“We are encouraged by this initial investment, for the new government’s attention towards the crisis and their openness to an ongoing commitment,” said Kimberly Templeton, program lead, Manitoba HIV Program. “Without an immediate, and an ongoing investment in HIV prevention, testing and treatment programs, the infrastructure of the Manitoba HIV Program will be compromised during this crisis, making it even more difficult for Manitobans impacted by HIV to connect to the treatment and care they need and deserve.” 

The new mobile care service operated by the AHWC will provide Indigenous-led HIV and STBBI care to individuals who are unhoused or precariously housed, in addition to other wrap-around supports. It will become their “home clinic” and will address immediate health issues, help manage any chronic health concerns and connect them with other supports including housing, community program, harm reduction services, mental health counselling or access to cultural supports like traditional medicines, ceremony or land-based programming, noted the minister. 

“For 30 years, Aboriginal Health and Wellness Centre of Winnipeg has been responding to the needs of our community,” said Colleen Ottertail, director of primary care, AHWC. “This is how we have expanded our services from two to 14 programs over the years supporting urban Indigenous peoples emphasizing cultural connections, compassionate and judgement-free low-barrier healthcare. Today, AHWC is very excited and deeply honoured to provide Indigenous-led HIV and STIBBI care for our relatives who are unhoused. This initiative is comprehensive, it includes primary care and chronic disease management, housing supports, in addition to nurturing cultural pride and emboldening ancestral knowledge through land-based healing.”   

World AIDS Day is meant to help remove stigma and highlight the progress being made to support people living with HIV and AIDS. The minister noted it is a fitting time to again pay tribute to an individual who committed himself to normalizing HIV and STBBI care, this time through a commemorative grant. 

In honour of the legacy of Dr. Dick Smith, a pioneer in HIV-AIDS patient treatment and education in Manitoba, the provincial government has asked Research Manitoba to create the Dr. John Richard (Dick) Middleton Smith Postdoctoral Fellowship in HIV-AIDS research. The fellowship will seek candidates committed to innovative research in HIV-AIDS with a focus on areas such as disease transmission dynamics, prevention strategies, treatment interventions, community engagement and health-care disparities. This award will open to applicants in February 2024 for a fall 2024 start. 

Public health officials in Manitoba have identified HIV and other STBBIs as a provincial priority, due to the significant increase in infection rates over the past decade. To treat and prevent further transmission, the province is also working to: