Annual Gay Health Forum to return featuring unmissable community discussions – http://gcn.ie/

The annual Gay Health Forum will be held on Friday, November 18 from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. Each year, the event addresses the most pressing issues about the health of the gbMSM and Trans communities. Taking place in the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission building, the forum will have an extensive list of speakers delivering updates on monkeypox and syphilis outbreaks, PrEP access, and updates from programmes such as MPower and Man2Man. It will be opened by Gay Health Network (GHN) secretary Bill Foley, followed by Minster of State for Public Health Frank Feighan TD.

The theme of this year’s forum is taken from a presentation by David Carroll, exploring pop music’s role during the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s. The doctoral scholar will deliver this presentation, entitled ‘Digging your scene: Pop music’s response to the emergence of HIV/AIDS’ on the day.

Another speaker at this year’s Gay Health Forum is UCD PhD Student Fernandos Ongolly. He will present a comparative study surrounding PrEP access and HIV services among marginalised groups.

Anyone interested in improving the sexual health of the groups that are served by the Gay Health Network is welcome to attend. It is an opportunity for members of the community to give input to policymakers and service providers on how to respond to HIV and STIs in Ireland.

Admission to the Gay Health Forum is free, but attendees must register for the event via the GHN website. Seats are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. For those who cannot make the in-person event, there will be a livestream online via GCN’s YouTube and Man2Man’s Facebook page.

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