| | | | October 2018 (Issue 14) |
Welcome Welcome to the October 2018 Sexual Health & HIV Policy EUROBulletin.
Our eFeature in this edition is an interview with Ben Collins. Ben is co-chair of the working group for European Testing Week, which this year takes place from 23-30 November. We spoke to Ben about testing week and how you can get involved.
Since the last edition, organisations around the world have marked World Contraception Day, International Safe Abortion Day, International Day of the Girl and Sexual Health Week, so there have been lots of opportunities for starting conversations, raising awareness and highlighting sexual and reproductive health issues in the media. The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) launched a campaign on International Safe Abortion Day which will run for six months, until International Women's Day in March. Called I Decide, it aims to raise awareness of the harms endured by women who are denied safe and legal abortion. This remains a highly political issue, and is the focus of sustained campaigning and advocacy. In this edition, we highlight a new research paper, mapping the backlash against gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights in six European member states. On World Contraception Day, the European Parliament hosted the launch of a new advocacy document, Limited Access: Contraception Deficit in Europe, published by the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development, which targets policy makers from across Europe. Other items to
look out for in this edition include: a collection of recommendations from the World Health Organization on sexual and reproductive health and rights issues affecting adolescents; and new data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control on drug-resistant gonorrhoea. Not your copy of the bulletin? Click the link below to subscribe. > Sign up to receive future issues of the Sexual Health & HIV Policy EUROBulletin
 eFeature Ben Collins is co-chair of the working group for European Testing Week, which this year takes place from 23-30 November. In this eFeature interview, we spoke to Ben about the week and how you can get involved. > Ben Collins – eFeature interview
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Sexual health rights & advocacy
New advocacy document on contraception access in Europe 
On World Contraception Day (26 September), a new advocacy
document, Limited Access: Contraception Deficit in Europe, was launched in the
European Parliament. Published by the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (EPF), it targets policy makers from across
Europe, the EU and at national levels. It follows on from the launch of the Contraception Atlas, earlier in the year, which scored European countries on their provision of contraception.
> Find out more
Progress report on child and adolescent health in Europe 
A new progress report on child and adolescent health in
Europe from the World Health Organization (WHO) has highlighted areas where health
outcomes are falling short. Issues of concern raised include mental health,
obesity and sexual and reproductive health. The report highlights that one in
three countries in the region do not offer legal access to contraception for
people under 18 without parental consent. WHO has also released a collection of its current recommendations on evidence-based actions to address sexual and reproductive health and rights issues affecting adolescents.
>
Read the press release
>
Download the full report
> Download the collection of recommendations
Policy development & guidance
Postpartum family planning 
On World Contraception Day (26 Sept), the World Health
Organization (WHO) Department of Reproductive Health and Research and HRP (the Human Reproduction Programme, run by United Nations agencies, WHO and the World Bank) highlighted
the importance of provision of postpartum contraceptive methods. Women who have
recently given birth are among those with the highest unmet need for
contraception.
>
Find out more on the WHO website
> View the
Postpartum Family Planning Compendium
Parliament & other European institutions
Funding for EPF project 'Parliamentarians Deliver' The European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development
(EPF) will receive a 3 million euro grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation to further its work catalysing action in the European Parliament on
family planning, reproductive, child and adolescent health and universal health
coverage in Europe and Africa.
> Find out more
EU Civil Society Forum calls for more action on HIV, TB and hepatitis The EU Civil Society Forum on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and
viral hepatitis has criticised the publication of a European Commission Staff
Working Document. The forum says that by publishing the lowest level policy
document, the Commission has signalled that it does not intend to develop
further policy for tackling the three diseases in the European region.
>
Read the full response from the EU Civil Society Forum > Read the Staff Working Document
Treatment & service guidelines
New guideline aims to help reduce caesarean section rates 
The World Health Organization (WHO) has released new
recommendations aiming to help reduce unnecessary caesarean sections. Globally, rates
of caesarean sections have been increasing and many sections are unnecessary,
putting women and their babies at risk. The new guidance contains non-clinical
interventions, such as educational interventions.
>
Find out more on the WHO website
>
Download the guidance
New European HIV treatment reference group Access to HIV treatment and care in Europe has improved in
recent years, but remains low in eastern Europe and central Asia (28% in 2016).
The WHO has convened a new European HIV treatment
reference group to engage with the issue of scaling up treatment across the
region, through capacity building, review of national policies, and guidance
for countries to encourage faster uptake of recommendations.
>
Find out more on the WHO European Region website
Evidence, data & research
Persistent but stable levels of drug-resistant gonorrhoea reported A new surveillance report from the European Centre for
Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows that drug-resistant gonorrhoea
continues to be an issue across Europe. The report finds high levels of
azithromycin resistance, which poses a threat to the effectiveness of the
current recommended treatment regimen.
>
Find out more on the ECDC website
>
Download the surveillance report
Hepatitis epidemiology in Europe A new technical report from ECDC examines the epidemiology of hepatitis B and C in
selected population groups, including men who have sex with men and other
groups at risk of sexual transmission of hepatitis. The report will contribute
to European guidance for hepatitis testing. ECDC has also released an
epidemiological update on the recent hepatitis A outbreak among men who have
sex with men.
>
Download the technical report on hepatitis B and C
>
Read the epidemiological report on hepatitis A
Hormonal contraception and migraine The European Headache Federation (EHF) and the European
Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health (ESC) have published a
consensus statement on the effect of exogenous oestrogens and progestogens on
the course of migraine in women of reproductive age.
>
View the statement in The Journal of
Headache and Pain (open access)
Reports & resources
Study on backlash against gender equality and women's and girls' rights 
The European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’
Rights and Constitutional Affairs has published a new research paper, designed
to map the backlash against gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights in six
member states (Austria, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia).
>
Download the paper (PDF)
CoPE fund open for applications Call for applications for a CoPE (continuous patient
education) grant are now open. The deadline for submissions is 1 November.
CoPE provides funding to community-based organisations in Europe and Central Asia for the production and translation of patient education
materials related to HIV and co-infections.
> Find
out more
Buying HIV and STI testing kits online The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is warning people who buy test kits for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV online to make sure that they are purchasing from safe and legitimate sources after seizing almost 10,000 unsafe kits since 2015.
> Find
out more
Campaigns & other news
New campaign: I decide what happens to my body 
The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) has
launched a new campaign, called I Decide. Over six months, it will raise
awareness of the harms endured by women who are denied safe and legal abortion.
>
Find out more
World AIDS Day theme announced World AIDS Day is held on 1 December every year. This year
will be the 30th World AIDS Day and the international theme has been
announced: Know your status.
>
Find out more on the UNAIDS website
Country-specific news
Belgium Parliamentary question on European movements in opposition to sexual and reproductive health and rights. > Find out more
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina must continue the fight against HIV and TB without Global Fund's aid.
>
Find out more
Greece The European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG) calls on Greek authorities to ensure that
justice is done for HIV-positive human rights’ defender Zak Kostopoulos, who died following an attack in Athens.
> Find out more
Hungary The INDIT Foundation, which provides harm reduction services for people who use drugs in Hungary, says training pharmacy staff, governmental and social workers is necessary to improve integrated care.
> Find out more
Malta HIV treatment in Malta is archaic, activist warns, with outdated drug regimens being prescribed.
> Find out more
Poland Council of Europe decision calls on Poland to immediately grant women access to legal abortion care and services.
>
Find out more
Portugal Portugal approves sale of test kits for HIV and hepatitis in pharmacies.
> Find out more
Russia Russian Federation commits to reach 75% antiretroviral therapy coverage in 2019.
> Find out more
Spain The Spanish Society of Contraception produced a manifesto for World Contraception Day.
> Find out more
United Kingdom The supply of medications, access to new HIV treatments, and staffing levels at HIV clinics could all be affected if there is a no-deal Brexit.
> Read this article on BuzzFeed
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