Viral memories: From HIV to COVID-19 and beyond
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Molecular. Genetics & Pop Health
Abstract
COVID-19 has altered how we feel about risk and wellbeing. In some ways, this has happened before: in the 1980s and 90s, HIV caused the AIDS pandemic, which transformed how we related to each other. Today, for many, HIV remains associated with gay men, who have turned to their experiences and memories of it to understand and live through COVID-19. Through interviews with younger and older gay men, I will explore how they remember HIV during COVID-19, and how their memories and experiences of HIV help them navigate COVID-19 risk in the UK. I will work with community organizations to develop better ways of communicating about risk and writing a new chapter in the history of gay communities.
Organisations
Publications
Garcia-Iglesias J
(2023)
Social media as a public health tool during the UK mpox outbreak: a qualitative study of stakeholders' experiences
in BMJ Public Health
Garcia-Iglesias J
(2024)
Ethical considerations in public engagement: developing tools for assessing the boundaries of research and involvement.
in Research involvement and engagement
García-Iglesias J
(2024)
Renaming mpox in Spanish, French, and Portuguese: using language to address stigma and racism.
in Lancet (London, England)
| Description | Conversation with Sexual Health Blood-borne Viruses Scottish Goverment (SHBBV) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Met to discuss their research interests in relation to HIV and sexual health and discussed a potential plan for future funding around the role of sex-on-premises venues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Guest talk at Centre for Health Security, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Delivered a guest talk about our project and the role of social sciences in pandemic preparedness and outbreak response at the Centre for Health Security, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health in the USA. Led to collaboration towards a funding application around sex-on-premises venues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | HIV after COVID-19 roundtable |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Roundtable webminar with key voices around mpox and sexual health in the UK, including Webinar with Claire Dewsnap, Michael Brady, Michelle Croston, Yvone Richards-Cooper, Virginia Berridge, and Susan Hopkins for World AIDS Day. Discussed the future of HIV in the aftermath of COVID-19. Attende by over 70 people from the UK, Europe, and US, including from third-sector organisations, UKHSA, and NHS. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Workshop with community organisations (1) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | Gathered together representatives from ten community organisations providing services around sexual health and HIV to discuss our project. We inquired about their interests and needs, and collected their feebdack on our research design and recruitment. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | World AIDS Day: 5 myths and misconceptions |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Quoted researcher around the relationships between mpox and HIV for Euronews.next |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/12/01/am-i-going-to-die-5-myths-and-misconceptions-about-hiv-and-... |