How can HIV Representatives represent positive people when they're given incentives to represent someone else?

This is a video from the HIV Consumer Alliance on Youtube that asks a very serious question: "How can HIV Representatives represent positive people when they're given incentives to represent someone else?

In Western Australia another problem is the lack of participatory democracy in the HIV Community. It seems that the same faces and names are entrenched in positions of petty power. The majority of these personalities have been in these positions, since the days of the SIDA Centre in the 1980s with them just moving from one organisation, to another as scandals close them down.

What Western Australia needs is intergenerational change. It's time for some retirements and new vibrant people with new vision to have an opportunity to represent the HIV Community. It's clear that nothing has been done to plan for intergenerational change and it begs the question why is it always the same faces that seem to get appointed to be HIV Reps?

Mother Gretta from the Perth Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence has for many years been blowing the whistle on the toxic culture in the WA AIDS Council and it's support groups. I have heard Mother Gretta say that in her opinion every time a new person attends one of the WAAC groups the old guard treat them so badly that the new people do not return.

I have seen with my own eyes bets being made by board members to see who was going to have sex with the new person first. Given the trauma that is associated with HIV infection which often involves coercion and/or sexual assault including drugging it has always seemed to me a breach of duty of care for these "bets" to be run by the so called "peak bodies". Not sure they know what duty of care is in WA - but I digress...

Lest we forget, the WA AIDS Council and the National Association of People with HIV Australia's group, HAPAN had to be closed down after a scandal involving the numbering of ballots in a so called anonymous election. Speaking generally, tussles of Power, control and bullying always seem to go hand in hand with this kind of "petty corruption" in community groups.

Clearly the HIV Community see the WA AIDS Council recycling the same faces to be leaders in the 1990s model, tired and toxic, programs and they vote with their feet. It's well known there are many allegations that these Organisation's Events for HIV+ have been so badly ran, with cultures of bullying and elections run as selections that only 2 or 3 people will have turned up to functions.

It's time for a New Deal for WA indeed. As Australia experiences growing financial turmoil and insecurity, the right financial decision would be for the WA Government to #CloseWAACdown. There needs to be a Merger of the BBV & STI sector into a state of the Art - One Stop Shop - Perth Sexual Health Clinic with a Community Health Hub for advocacy groups.

This new facility could provide doctors and pharmacy for not just HIV+ but it could be a hub for international visitors who are known to travel to Perth for medical treatments. The Government would also receive the benefit of removing the waste and duplication of services that comes from maintaining properties for all these boutique services.

It's time for a Forensic Audit of the AIDS Industry in Australia. All of these incentive programs for staff and HIV reps need to be independently examined to make sure that nothing is amiss. Further, there needs to be an end to the Voluntary Complaints mechanism process that are sometimes available through the NGO the Health Consumer's Council of WA.

The best solution would be for a Patient Bill of Rights and a Statutory Authority to be set up to independently review complaints in such a way that evidence is preserved with a focus on justice and accountability in the interests of the client rather than the current process which seems to be focused on preventing reputational damage for Organisations.

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How can HIV Representatives represent positive people when they're given incentives to represent someone else?