Talkabout spoke to Kate Reakes, the new coordinator for Poz Het (Positive Heterosexuals), about support for people living heterosexually with HIV.
What brought you to Poz Het?
I’d been living in Northern Ireland for eighteen months and the bad weather and the lack of summer was starting to get to me. I was looking at the web to see what was happening back home, found this position and here I am. My background was in mental health and drug and alcohol, and I’ve always had a keen interest in HIV and sexual health.
How have you found it so far?
- Really busy! There are lots of things going on. Everyone; the clients, the services, have been really welcoming. We’re building on some inspiring past work, and looking towards the future and launching our new strategic plan.
What does Poz Het offer?
We have a very comprehensive peer support program, including a monthly Open House meeting at the Tree of Hope in Surry Hills. On Friday September 12 from 7pm to 9pm we’ll be talking about disclosure. Then on Friday October 10 (also from 7pm to 9pm at the Tree of Hope) we’ll be discussing relationships and the issues facing sero-discordant couples (including fertility).
We have an annual retreat at the end of August, when we go to the Hawkesbury River. Another great chance to get together is our Annual Workshop, and this will be on Saturday November 15. People can meet others in similar situations and have a significant time talk to about some of the issues they face. One of the topics for the Annual Workshop is feedback from the second phase of the Straight Poz study. Soon we’ll be getting involved in the next (third) phase of the study. We also cater for our Western Sydney clients, with Shed events, The Shed is on every couple of months, with a topical guest speaker. We try to keep the number of HIV workers that come along to a minimum so that the event is truly a space for our clients.
People can access our freecall telephone support from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday (if we are ever away from the phone there is an answering machine, and we do get back to people). The number is 1800 812 404. This is completely confidential, and we can give people practical information about HIV, refer to helpful services, and offer them support and a listening ear.
We produce booklets specifically for heterosexual people with HIV/AIDS, Sex Matters A-Z (sexual health for heterosexual couples living with HIV/AIDS) and Changing Lives (a resource for heterosexual people living with HIV/AIDS). These are available on our website (www.pozhet.org.au) or give us a call for a hardcopy.
Our website will be relaunched in August, and we hope it will be another forum to connect with others, and there’ll be links to other information and services.
We also provide advocacy, ensuring heterosexual issues are on the agenda for other services and in policy.
Our workforce development is about helping educate services around issues facing heterosexual HIV positive people and appropriate ways to engage with heterosexual people.
What words of encouragement would you have for a heterosexual person who has been diagnosed and doesn’t know what to do next?
People might feel nervous the first time they come to an event, but that’s normal. There’s only one way to find out if it’s helpful or not. Give us a call or come along. We’re from all walks of life and we’re all friendly.
How can you reassure people who might be worried about their confidentiality?
We’re a small team. All our services are confidential. Our open house nights are usually at the Tree of Hope and that’s a very discreet community centre. It doesn’t look like an HIV or health related building. All the other clients at Poz Het also understand how important confidentiality is, so what is said in the group stays in the group. Our groups have got a casual and relaxed atmosphere, and you can just come along, but if you give us a call first it helps us with planning the catering.
What are the significant issues for heterosexual people with HIV?
Social isolation is a big issue. Not knowing other people, whether that means other positive people, or knowing partners and family members of people with HIV.
A lot of stigma is attached to being HIV positive in the straight community. People don’t often have the chance to talk about what HIV means for day to day living. If people don’t know whether they can approach services, it has implications for their health. Then there’s the issue of finding ways to disclose, or talk about it, with partners and children. Other important issues may include having children, and fertility and conception issues.
Poz Het has a particular philosophy about including the partners of people with HIV…
We recognize that it’s not just the person who’s been diagnosed who’s affected by HIV. Partners have questions, as do families, children, parents and carers. All those people are welcome to our activities. No one is excluded. Within activities we might offer something specific, just for partners or just for the positive person. I’ve had a lot of contact from the partners of positive people, who are looking for info or for support for themselves or their loved one.
Poz het has just moved, same phone line though?
We still have the same freecall number (1800 812 404), but we have moved. Just across the road from our previous address. Our new location is 155 Pitt Street Redfern and we’ve got a postal address (PO Box 3159 Redfern 2016). If anyone would like to pop in and say hello they’d be very welcome.
Coming up on Poz Het’s calendar:
- Retreat weekend 29th – 31st August (Hawksbury)
- Disclosure discourse Friday Sept 12th 7pm – 9pm (Tree of Hope)
- PozNeg couples (and fertility) Friday 10th October 7pm – 9pm (Tree of Hope)
- Annual workshop Saturday November 15th 9.30am – 4.30pm (Tree of Hope)
