MANAGER'S REPORT, Pebruary 20, 1987 ..., - « (SOCTAL: A-2 = 3)

Clause Ne. 1 continued

AIDS ACTIVITIES REQUIRED IN 1987 —

The rapidly growing AIDS caseload and the increasing numbers of HIV
infected persons will place heavy demands on the Lower Mainland public
health agencies for surveillance, prevention and community support
services. The workload generated by an active program will guickly
' exceed the Department's ability to handle it.

Blocking AIDS virus transmission can eliminate the disease in the
1990's. At present this can only be done by education. Many
populations must be addressed, some presently at risk and others with
the potential to be at high risk in the future. Among those that should
be targeted are: children and school-age youth, care-giving
professionals, intravenous drug abusers, homosexuals, prostitutes, and
all persons who have frequent transient sexual relationships. People at
some risk require sufficient information to make intelligent decisions
and minimize the visk of infection. The Vancouver Health Department
must be a major player in a province-wide educational program. Tie
level of our response will depend on the level of Support the City of
Vancouver is able to provide.

1. Public Education Campaign

In the United States the Surgeon General has proposed massive public
education programs on AIDS. In Britain the pudiic health information
budget has tripled ta 30 million pounds. In Canada the Canadian Public
Health Association has been given $700,000 a year over five years to
produce public advertising.

An AIDS publie education campaign must be aimed at changing people's

sexual behaviour towards safer sex. The campaign must be explicit. It
must also be stressed that there {is no ‘Safe Sex’ only ‘Safer Sex'. The
onus must be placed on protecting people and their sexual partners from

AIDS.

Health promotion Jiterature points cut that changing behaviour 1s
difficult. As nealth educators, we must attempt to promote changing
behaviour. A massive program in Montreal, aimed at the high risk groups,
resulted {in condom usage by sixty per cent of those surveyed. While the
Tow percentage of usage is discouraging, it illustrates that one-shot
campaigns are not enough. A comprehensive health promotion approach js
needed,

Canada {s currently behind the United States in the number of AIDS
cases. We have a very low level of infection in the female and
heterosexual populations. Even though changing behaviour js difficult,
should health officials wait before introducing a massive education
campaign? One needs only to look at San Francisco to answer the
question. There, 1 in 200 women submitting premarital blood samples are
now positive. San Francisco is now placing condom ads on television.

Rather than spending money on AIDS hospital and medical care in the 1990s
we must use the only weapon we currently haye~-public education. We must
urge the Federal and Provinctal Governments to undertake a massive and
on-going AIDS public education pragram. We cannot wait to see if what
happened in the United States will happen here.

The Yancouver Health Department {s not proposing a separate campatgn such
as a brochure in every household in the City. Until we know what the
Federal and Provincial governments will produce, we would be throwing
money away on a small campaign of our own. .

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