New research on HIV & Aging

The HIV epidemic in Canada is aging. There are an estimated 65,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in Canada, and improved medication and care has resulted in longer, healthier lives for people living with HIV/AIDS who have access to these treatments. And while he number of new HIV cases emerging remains stable, yet we’re seeing an increase in new infections in people over 50 years old.

The instersections between HIV and aging are intricate.  The “greying” of the HIV epidemic, and the complexity of aging with HIV, presents new challenges for people living with HIV and AIDS and the AIDS service and other community-based organizations that provide services and support.

On October 22, our friends from the Canadian Working Group on HIV & Rehabilitation (CWGHR) joined PAN and the Positive Living Society of BC to co-host a rapporteur session following their attendance atthe Canadian Association on Gerontology (CAG) Conference, Aging in a Changing World  in Vancouver.

Participants at the Learning Exchange heard about how there is slowly more and more research on HIV/AIDS and aging being presented at the CAG conference each year and that the HIV/AIDS research field has much to share and much to learn from those that have been doing research on aging within the gerontolgy field. Moving forward, what partnerships can the HIV/AIDS and aging research worlds forge? This is a discussion that will certainly continue to be relevant as researchers and community-based service providers work to understand the health and social needs people with HIV and AIDS as they age.

At the event, Glenn Betteridge from CWGHR presented highlights from the conference and engaged participants in discussions about how the research intersects with community-based HIV/AIDS work.  His presentation looked at three themes that arose from the HIV/AIDS research presented at the conference:

  • Making sense of what we know about HIV & aging,
  • Identifting emerging challenges and needs, and
  • Meeting challenges by building “communities.”

Glenn and the researchers whose presentations from CAG that he synthesized have graciously allowed us to post the slides here. Click here to download the powerpoint slideshow, or here to download a PDF of the presentation to learn more about the themes highlighted at the Learning Exchange on HIV & Aging.

Also, at the OHTN 2012 research conference, the final plenary focused on HIV and aging, with presentations by Michael Yin, Lisa Power, Stephen Karpiak, and David Brennan.  Click here to read the rapporteur notes from this session or here to watch the recording of the presentation.

For links to more information on HIV & aging, visit this page on CWGHR’s website, and watch for our HIV and aging webinar in 2013!

Questions? Feedback? Get in touch!
Andrea Langlois
Community-Based Research Manager
[email protected]