Women’s health evening

08 February 2013

Women living with HIV are often underrepresented in patient forums. To address this on the 6 February the HIV Patient Forum held its first open evening for women living with HIV in London. The aim was to provide information on a range of women’s health topics and to engage women in the development of our future services so they better meet their needs.

Photo: Dr Sara Day, Jane Bruton (Clinical Lead), Kirsten Borkowska (PA), Sarah Dermont (Specialist Midwife) and Zoe Sheppard (Nurse Practitioner)

Women living with HIV are often underrepresented in patient forums. To address this on the 6 February the HIV Patient Forum held its first open evening for women living with HIV in London. The aim was to provide information on a range of women’s health topics and to engage women in the development of our future services so they better meet their needs.

A diverse group of 28 women of all ages, backgrounds and life experiences came from across London and the neighbouring counties. They attended three workshops, run by health professionals from Chelsea and Westminster—Dr Sara Day, Ms Zoe Sheppard, Dr Naomi Low-Beer, Ms Sarah Dermont and Ms Jane Bruton, and Ms Angelina Namiba from Positively UK. The workshops addressed issues of conception, pregnancy planning, sexual health and the menopause.

The evening was a great success. Perhaps the biggest achievement was the degree of interaction and warmth shown by the women, a large proportion of whom have tackled this stigmatising disease alone for many years. Feedback from the women who attended was extremely positive:

  • “Many thanks for organising this really useful and informative event”
  • “It was all very interesting and helpful even if not directly applicable to my current situation. PLEASED, you made me go through all three workshops—I would have missed out otherwise!”
  • “It was very informative—it exceeded anything I thought. I enjoyed it and hope to come again. I learned about new methods and other health advice that I will implement in my lifestyle to further improve my health and well-being.”
  • “Absolutely brilliant—you were all fantastic! So interesting and informative. Nice that something is done for women.”
  • “Educational and informative. Clear, funny, interactive. I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was pleased with this forum.”
  • “I didn’t know what to expect. I worried perhaps some of this wouldn’t apply to me after looking at the poster (I’m past having babies) but I’m so glad I attended.”

The majority of the women felt the evening met their expectations, with their main criticism being not having enough time!

The women felt that all sessions provided them with information they didn’t previously know, which was helpful to everyday living. The women also gave suggestions for other topics they would like to learn more about.

Almost all women said they would want to attend more events similar to this one and were keen to maintain contact with one another.

The women’s enthusiasm and desire for further events has highlighted the importance of the HIV Patient Forum. Not only as a provider for women’s health and information needs, but also as a much needed social resource to provide emotional support for HIV positive women facing similar challenges in their lives.