The Moving Mountains: HIV/AIDS community based research conference takes place next week.
The community is invited to the opening celebrations on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Prince George Native Friendship Centre where there will be a traditional welcome, a short talk by aboriginal health researcher Carreilynn Lund, followed by a reception.
During the conference on June 18 and 19, with 50 delegates in attendance, the issue of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in northern BC will be addressed, acknowledging the contributions of community-based service organizations like Positive Living North: No kheyoh t'sih'en t'sehena Society and the Northern HIV and Education Society.
Seek and Treat for Optimal Prevention (STOP), a provincial government initiative, and resulting efforts by the Northern Health Authority have also contributed significantly.
"This event will be the first of its kind to be held in the region," said Jamie Reschny, PhD candidate at the University of Northern British Columbia and event co-chair. "We are thrilled to be working with a knowledgeable committee in organizing an event that we hope will spark collaborative and innovative new research on HIV/AIDS."
There are still challenges of HIV prevention and care within northern, rural and remote areas and new research and information is still needed to better understand the epidemic, to inform policy and program initiatives.
The conference is funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Canadian Association of HIV/AIDS Research, and the support of the Pacific AIDS Network, the CIHR REACH CBR Collaborative Centre, and the Aboriginal HIV/AIDS CBR Collaborative Centre.
