“Sorted”—news releases

31 March 2006

Today ‘The Vaccinators’, the sexual health superheroes, dressed in their superhero outfits and arriving in their superhero bus, launched the start of the Sorted campaign to encourage gay men to vaccinate against Hepatitis A and B.

50% OF LONDON’S GAY MEN ARE NOT VACCINATED AGAINST HEPATITIS A and B

Sorted and G-A-Y Bar join forces to offer free vaccination service

Today ‘The Vaccinators’, the sexual health superheroes, dressed in their superhero outfits and arriving in their superhero bus, launched the start of the Sorted campaign to encourage gay men to vaccinate against Hepatitis A and B.

Sorted has joined forces with the G-A-Y Bar (Old Compton Street, Soho) to entice more gay men to get vaccinated against Hepatitis A and B. Every Thursday evening throughout April, customers will be able to get vaccinated on the first floor of the
G-A-Y bar as part of a night out.

Even though Hepatitis B is 100 times more infectious than HIV, only one in two gay men in London is vaccinated. The procedure is free, quick, straight-forward and will protect those vaccinated from a potentially life-threatening disease.

Dr. Alan McOwan, Lead Clinician at the Victoria Clinic, is confident that this will encourage more gay men to get vaccinated. “Our campaign and the presence of the ‘The Vaccinators’ will raise the profile of the importance of gay men being proactive about their health. We want more men to get vaccinated, so we are taking the Sorted service into the very heart of the community.”

Bar and Club promoter, Jeremy Joseph said, “Sorted’s presence at the G-A-Y Bar will really encourage guys to vaccinate ‘on the spot’ or at least think about the risks associated with Hepatitis A and B if they don’t. This is a really worthwhile partnership that makes getting vaccinated so easy.”

For more information, please contact:

Olivia Jones or Paul Tanner, 90TEN Ltd
T: +44 (0) 20 7627 0990
M: +44 (0)7976 287637
E: olivia.jones@90ten.co.uk or paul.tanner@90ten.co.uk

Notes to editors:

Sorted was set up by The Victoria Clinic for HIV and Sexual Health (Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust) to address the fact that so few gay and bisexual men had been vaccinated against Hepatitis A and B, which are potentially life threatening.

  • Hepatitis is 100 times more infectious than HIV
  • Unlike HIV, Hepatitis B is preventable by vaccination
  • Hepatitis B can cause serious life-long liver disease and even death
  • By the age of 35, 1 in 3 gay men in London will have had Hepatitis B

(Source: Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust)

Hepatitis vaccinations are provided, free of charge and with no need to make an appointment, at:

Sorted Soho
Soho Centre for Health and Care, 29-30 Soho Square, London W1
Tuesday 17h30-21h00
Tel: 020 7534 6500

Sorted City
Barts Sexual Health Centre, Kenton & Lucas Wing, St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London EC1
Wednesday 12h00-14h00
Tel: 020 7601 8090

Sorted East
Ambrose King Centre, Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, London E1
Thursday 18h00-20h00
Tel: 020 7377 7306

Sorted at The G-A-Y Bar
Thursday 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th April
17h30-20h00
Tel: 020 7534 6500

For more information about Hepatitis B visit www.hepinfo.org.

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Contributors
George Vasilopoulos