With college students still at a high risk of acquiring HIV, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation has released a comprehensive guide to HIV prevention, treatment and care on college and university campuses.
The HRC is one of the country’s leaders in addressing and advocating for LGBTQ issues. The organization has long mobilized college students and helped train young advocates, but this week it released its first guide for college administrators, staff and students outlining vital steps that can be taken to improve student awareness, health and care.
The guide’s release coincided with National Youth HIV and AIDS Awareness Day.
Although the overall rate for HIV infection in the U.S. has declined, people between the ages of 14 and 24 continue to be at high risk. Approximately 80 percent of new diagnoses in this age group come from college-age individuals, 20 to 24. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 51 percent of young people living with HIV do not know their status.
“We know there are special risk factors for youth that are on college campuses and also a lack of resources,” said Ashland Johnson, HRC director of public education and research. “We’re trying to build a long-term campaign where we target administrators and see what the students need in order to effect change in this population.”
Research was done on the risk factors and why HIV rates remain high among this population. There was an examination of how colleges and universities are addressing education, testing, dissemination of information and treatment. The idea was to assemble a resource for administrators so they can develop and enact best practices.
“Not just the awareness, but what they can do tomorrow, next month or next semester with the resources that they have,” said Johnson. “We’ve made a lot of advances when it comes to HIV prevention and awareness, but with this very vulnerable group, we’re not seeing the advances we need to see.
