HIV and TB Support Services

Overview

Birmingham City Council (BCC) would like your views on support services for people with HIV and people with tuberculosis (TB). We are interested in your views and experiences even if you do not currently use these services.

Formal consultation on planned changes will commence the 1st May 2015. This exercise is engagement to assist  BCC in developing proposals for formal consultation.

HIV and TB are serious conditions which can cause people to become very ill and even die if not diagnosed and treated. Although HIV and TB are two different illnesses, both need long term treatment. HIV and TB are more common in vulnerable people such as the homeless or people who have recently arrived from countries where there is more HIV and TB. And both HIV and TB can cause alarm and stigma in some communities.

For people with HIV, and people who have TB, medication is very important to help them get better or feel well, and stay healthy. The treatment for both HIV and TB needs to be taken every day, for a long time. In the case of HIV, treatment needs to be daily for life.

There is a lot of fear and shame about HIV and TB, so people may be afraid to get tested to see if they have it, or seek help and get treatment if they do.

Some people with HIV or TB need additional support, as well as medical treatment, to help them manage their condition.  At the moment BCC funds specialist support services for people with HIV, but not for people with TB. BCC also provides general support services such as social work and help with housing for those who are eligible.

Birmingham City Council wants to find out:

•             what people think about the existing HIV support services;

•             how HIV support services might be improved in the future; and

•             what support services are needed by people with TB.

 HIV - Human Immunodeficiency Virus

HIV is a medical condition which can make people very ill by stopping their body fighting infections and disease.

HIV is usually caught by having sex, although using a condom reduces the risk. HIV can be passed on in other ways too:

•             By sharing needles

•             During pregnancy, or breast-feeding if the mother has HIV

 Some people are more at risk of HIV:

•             Men who have sex with men

•             People from Black African communities

•             People from countries where HIV is more common

HIV can’t be cured, but people can be treated with prescribed medicines. Confidential treatment is available from special HIV services and is free for everyone in the UK. Medical treatment means most people with HIV can live a long and healthy life, but it is really important to get treatment as soon as possible. If untreated HIV, leads to a serious and life-threatening illness.

TB - Tuberculosis

TB most often affects people’s lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. TB is usually passed on by close, long-term contact with someone who already has it, often someone in the same household. Coughing and sneezing can spread TB. 

Before antibiotics were introduced, TB was a major health problem in the UK. Nowadays, the condition is much less common. However, in the last 20 years TB cases have gradually increased, particularly among those in some ethnic minority communities.

Many healthy people are able to fight off TB infection. However, some people are more vulnerable, including:

•             Homeless people

•             Drug users

•             People from countries where TB is more common.

TB can usually be completely cured with antibiotics. Most people will need to take daily medicine for at least six months or even more than a year Sometimes people need more than one type of medicine. A vaccination (injection) is available to prevent the illness for people most at risk.

Support services

Birmingham City Council funds some voluntary organisations to offer support services to people with HIV to help them manage their condition. These organisations include:

•             Freshwinds;

•             AB Plus;

•             Terrance Higgins Trust; and

•             Sofali.

We want to find out what people think about these HIV support services and how they might be improved to help us plan future support services.

Birmingham City Council also has a team of HIV Social Workers, funded by University Hospitals Birmingham HIV Treatment Service, to offer support. We are also interested in finding out what TB support services people need. We are not looking at experiences of medical care for HIV or TB.

Please help us by completing the questionnaire. Some of the questions may feel very personal but you do not have to answer any that you do not want to. All answers and comments will be kept completely confidential. The more information you are able to give us, the better we can understand how services can best be developed to meet people’s needs.