Nice Premium: What is the message you wish to convey with this initiative?
Christine Tabuenca: Hello, Sidaction has decided to launch an awareness and prevention campaign with the arrival of summer, “Test Your Knowledge on HIV/AIDS”. Indeed, summer is conducive to romantic encounters and a certain lightheartedness that can lead us to take risks.
NP: What will be the upcoming events for Sidaction?
CT: The message we want to convey is that AIDS is unfortunately everyone’s concern, whether we are young, less young, homosexual, or heterosexual… We cannot pretend this virus no longer exists.
Can you give us some statistics about AIDS in France?
CT: In France, in 2006, there were 7,000 new infections reported, and it is estimated that 40,000 people are living without knowing their HIV-positive status. In 2007, people are still dying of AIDS. These numbers are alarming: among the newly diagnosed, we see that 15% are young people between 15/24 years old and 60% of them are heterosexual women in their forties… As you can see, AIDS is everyone’s concern.
What are the basic pieces of advice you offer throughout the year?
CT: The advice: do not take risks, do not gamble with your life or your partner’s life, protect ourselves!
Finally, what is lacking in France today in terms of prevention and monitoring of the disease?
CT: What is lacking in France: a true prevention plan in middle and high schools at the age when one discovers sexuality… Our patients are still too much a source of discrimination and isolation…
