Funding the fight

UNSW researchers have received half a million dollars from the NSW Government to fund new studies into sexually transmitted infections.

The National Centre for HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research (NCHECR), in UNSW's Faculty of Medicine, has received $500,000 from the NSW Government to fund three new studies into sexually transmitted infections.

Announced by the NSW Minister for Health, Reba Meagher, the studies will look at improving understanding of HIV and sexually transmitted infections risk in gay men, improving the response to STIs among Indigenous Australians, and mapping STI prevalence and access to health services among Sydney's female sex workers.

"This investment will further strengthen HIV services and programs in NSW and builds on the $90 million funding to Area Health Services and non-government organisations in 2007-08 for HIV prevention, care and treatment activities," Ms Meagher said.

New figures released by NSW Health reveal 404 new notifications of HIV in NSW in 2007.

"The 2007 result confirms that the NSW HIV notification rate has remained stable over the past 10 years but any new cases of HIV are too many," Ms Meagher said.

"Avoiding big increases is good news but our goal is to achieve a sustained reduction in HIV and there's clearly still a lot of work to be done to get there."

Media Contact: Steve Offner | 9385 1583 | s.offner@unsw.edu.au