10,963
edits
Gynopedia needs your support! Please consider contributing content, translating a page, or making a donation today. With your support, we can sustain and expand the website. Gynopedia has no corporate sponsors or advertisers. Your support is crucial and deeply appreciated.
Bogotá: Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
→Laws & Social Stigmas
| Line 82: | Line 82: | ||
There are no residency and travel restrictions related to HIV in Colombia. This means that, if you're a foreigner and you are planning to visit Colombia, you will not be asked for medical certificates or proof of your HIV status upon entering the country.<ref>[http://www.hivtravel.org/Default.aspx?PageId=143&CountryId=49 COLOMBIA - REGULATIONS ON ENTRY, STAY AND RESIDENCE FOR PLHIV]</ref> According to HIVTravel: "The Colombian Embassy in Brazil informs us that the Colombian authorities have never requested HIV-specific information from people entering the country. Proof of Yellow Fever vaccination is required from people who have visited endemic areas. The Embassy refers to the Public Health General Director in Bogotá."<ref>[http://www.hivtravel.org/Default.aspx?PageId=143&CountryCode=CO COLOMBIA - REGULATIONS ON ENTRY, STAY AND RESIDENCE FOR PLHIV]</ref> | There are no residency and travel restrictions related to HIV in Colombia. This means that, if you're a foreigner and you are planning to visit Colombia, you will not be asked for medical certificates or proof of your HIV status upon entering the country.<ref>[http://www.hivtravel.org/Default.aspx?PageId=143&CountryId=49 COLOMBIA - REGULATIONS ON ENTRY, STAY AND RESIDENCE FOR PLHIV]</ref> According to HIVTravel: "The Colombian Embassy in Brazil informs us that the Colombian authorities have never requested HIV-specific information from people entering the country. Proof of Yellow Fever vaccination is required from people who have visited endemic areas. The Embassy refers to the Public Health General Director in Bogotá."<ref>[http://www.hivtravel.org/Default.aspx?PageId=143&CountryCode=CO COLOMBIA - REGULATIONS ON ENTRY, STAY AND RESIDENCE FOR PLHIV]</ref> | ||
Generally speaking, Colombia has a low rate of HIV infection. It is estimated that 150,000 adults (ages 15-49) , or about 0.5% of the population, are living with HIV, as of 2017. However, HIV does particularly certain groups and communities, such as sex workers (1.2% infection rate), men who have sex with men (17% infection rate), injection drug users (2.8% infection rate), prisoners (1.4% infection rate), and transgender people (21.4% infection rate). For people who do live with HIV, there are social issues related to stigma and shame that they may deal with. According to a 2015 survey, only about 37% of Colombian said that they would buy fresh vegetables from a vendor if they knew that person had HIV, and only about 30% of young people (ages 15 to 24) had sufficient knowledge of HIV prevention.<ref>[http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/colombia Country factsheets - COLOMBIA 2017]</ref> | Generally speaking, Colombia has a low rate of HIV infection. It is estimated that 150,000 adults (ages 15-49) , or about 0.5% of the population, are living with HIV, as of 2017. However, HIV does particularly impact certain groups and communities, such as sex workers (1.2% infection rate), men who have sex with men (17% infection rate), injection drug users (2.8% infection rate), prisoners (1.4% infection rate), and transgender people (21.4% infection rate). For people who do live with HIV, there are social issues related to stigma and shame that they may deal with. According to a 2015 survey, only about 37% of Colombian said that they would buy fresh vegetables from a vendor if they knew that person had HIV, and only about 30% of young people (ages 15 to 24) had sufficient knowledge of HIV prevention.<ref>[http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/colombia Country factsheets - COLOMBIA 2017]</ref> | ||
One major concern for health care officials is the low HIV testing rate. The majority of Colombians do not receive HIV tests regularly or at all. There are many factors that contribute to the low test rate, particularly because HIV tests are expensive, ranging from the equivalent of $20 to $40 USD, which is simply unaffordable to many Colombians. Furthermore, HIV may be perceived as not a real threat or real issue to Colombians, especially if they're in relationships. Doctors also typically do not offer an HIV test to their patients, especially if they're not seen as part of a traditionally high-risk group. These factors worry some officials, who think that the HIV infection rate may grow under these circumstances. There are also new groups of people who are becoming more commonly infected, such as housewives, who have contracted HIV from husbands who had unprotected sex outside of their marriage. Health care experts hope that women, along with all Colombians, can be tested more often.<ref>[https://www.dw.com/en/hiv-infections-increasing-in-colombia/av-17553354 HIV infections increasing in Colombia]</ref> <ref>[https://www.nyu.edu/about/news-publications/news/2016/february/a-window-to-prevent-hivaids-epidemic-in-colombia.html A Window to Prevent HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Colombia]</ref> | |||
===What to Get & Where to Get It=== | ===What to Get & Where to Get It=== | ||