Okay so I have some interesting information happening in the GLBTQ community regarding health care. Today's update includes an article regarding the ethics of disclosing a person's HIV status. According to the article a number of doctors have worked with Eqyptian authorities to help detain a number of HIV positive citizens. For more information you can find the article here
As promised, here are several local organizations that you could get involved with if you are interested in helping with the GLBTQ community.
Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force
It is an organization dedicated to saving, sustaining, and empowering the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS and preventing the spread of infections
If you would like more information you can visit there website at www.patf.org or you can email them for more information info@patf.org
Persad Center
The Persad Center is the nation's second oldest licensed counseling center, specifically created to serve lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender(LGBT) community.
For more information you can visit their website at www.persadcenter.org
Well that's all that I have for you right now. I'll be back next week with more interesting information for you all.
To kick off our first post to this site, I thought it might be useful to explain some terms and also explain some of the major health issues which tend to impact the GLBTQ community.
First, What is GLBTQ?
This refers to Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender and Queer.
Are there special health concerns for people who are members of the GLBTQ community?
Yes, while often people feel that the GLBTQ community doesn't have any health concerns that are any different from the rest of the population, this is not necessarily true. Often the sole health concern which comes to mind is HIV/AIDS within the Gay male population however this is not the only health concern that impacts the community.
The following health conditions are just some of those which impact the GLBTQ community:
Depression
Anal Cancer for Men who have sex with men(MSM)
Hepatitis
HPV and Genital Warts particularly with MSM
Syphilis with MSM
A great resource for more information can be found at the LGBT Health Channel and the Gay Lesbian Medical Association
Check back next week when I have a list of great organizations that you can get involved with.