Is PrEP right for you?

At The Damien Center, we're always looking for new tools to add to our HIV prevention toolbox. Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) is one of those tools. It's the new(er) kid on the HIV block, and we want you to be informed about what it is it, how it works, and if it might be the right prevention tool for you. The best way to figure that out? Check out our Q & A below and contact us today to keep the conversation about PrEP going. Jeremy Turner, our Director of Supportive Services, is available at 317.632.0123 ext. 254 or jturner@damien.org.

What is PrEP?
PrEP is a new HIV prevention approach where HIV-negative individuals use HAART (Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy) medications to reduce their risk of becoming infected if they are exposed to the virus. The medications work to prevent HIV from establishing infection inside the body. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Truvada, an HIV medication, for PrEP use in 2012.

Who does PrEP work for?
PrEP has been shown to reduce risk of HIV infection through sex for gay and bisexual men, transgender women, and heterosexual men and women, as well as among people who inject drugs. PrEP has been shown to help reduce HIV infection risk in multiple studies, including the iPrEx trial, Partners PrEP, TDF2, and the Bangkok Tenofovir Study.

How well does PrEP work?
Truvada for PrEP provides a significant reduction in HIV risk for HIV-negative individuals who take the pills every day as directed. If a daily dose is missed, the level of HIV protection may decrease. It only works if you take it. People who use PrEP correctly and consistently have higher levels of protection against HIV. It does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections (STI) or pregnancy and should still be used in conjunction with condoms. It is not a cure for HIV.

Is PrEP right for me?
PrEP may be right for you if you have a partner or partners known to be HIV-1 infected OR are a gay, bisexual, or other man who has sex with men in a high HIV prevalence area or social network and has one or more of the following conditions: a diagnosis of a bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the last year; exposure to an STI through a sexual network in the last year; 10 or more sexual partners in the last year; used methamphetamine in the last year; or had unprotected anal intercourse with a partner of unknown HIV-1 status with any of the factors listed above.

I think PrEP might be right for me. What's next?
If you’re interested in learning more on how to access PrEP, contact Jeremy Turner, Damien Center Director of Supportive Services, at 317.632.0123 ext. 254 or jturner@damien.org, or ask your physician about PrEP.

Damienpalooza: Art + Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

According to CDC estimates, roughly 280,000 (or one in four) people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States are women, 15% of whom don’t know they’re infected. Damienpalooza 2014 will bring education and art under one roof as The Damien Center and collaborating artists focus the conversation on National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day through music, dance, theater, real-life testimonials, and more.

On March 8 - that's this Saturday! - we invite you to join us as we take in performances by dance company Create Freedom Arts Projects, local band I Dream in Evergreen, actress Ali Curtis of The Theatre Within, singer/songwriter Jamie Nichole, and spoken word artist Charlene White as well as the powerful story of Stephanie Brown from the Alicia Keys Empowered campaign. Stephanie contracted HIV as a young woman and has dedicated herself to fighting HIV and the stigma it carries. Inspired by art and moved by the stories of real women affected by HIV, we hope you'll leave empowered to take a stand for women and girls and informed about what they can do to fight HIV and its stigma in our community. 

The historic Athenaeum Theatre in Indianapolis will play host to Damienpalooza 2014, and the $5 admission fee as well as cash bar proceeds will benefit The Damien Center. Spirits Sponsor Ketel One supports The Damien Center throughout the year. We hope to see you there!  

Event                  Damienpalooza

Date/Time          March 8, 2014 at 7:30pm

Cost                    $5 (at the door)

Location             The Athenaeum Theatre, 401 E. Michigan St., Indianapolis 46204

Details                damien.org/damienpalooza       

News roundup: HIV in the headlines

We like to think we're pretty lucky. As an HIV/AIDS service organization, not only do we get to do meaningful work that makes an actual difference in the lives of people affected by HIV, but also we get to see changes happening in our field on an almost constant basis. Yeah, some of them don't pan out the way we think they will, but we're encouraged to see scientists trying new approaches to finding a vaccine or cure for HIV. We're also encouraged to see more and more people engaging with the cause to end HIV/AIDS and support those living with it, eradicate the stigma surrounding HIV, remember those who have lived and died with HIV/AIDS, and have tough conversations about sex, HIV, and how it all fits together.

We also know the news is hard to keep up with, so we're going to be collecting and sharing some top headlines for you more often in 2014. Our hope is that you'll take a few minutes to see what's happening with HIV around the globe. Please keep in mind that by sharing these links, we are in no way making endorsements.

Encouraging First-Year Results for the "Increasing Access to HIV Care and Treatment" Initiative
Blog.AIDS.gov - January 3, 2014

HIV returns in two patients after bone marrow transplant 
CNN.com - December 9, 2013

Life Expectancy for North Americans With HIV Reaches Historic High
TheBodyPro.com - December 19, 2013

New Studies Unlock Mystery Of How HIV Causes AIDS
HuffingtonPost.com - December 19, 2013

Women with bisexual partners account for new HIV cases: study
NYPost.com - January 1, 2014

Taking HIV prevention pill may not encourage risky sex: U.S. study
Reuters.com- December 18, 2013

Happy reading, and Happy New Year!

Top Posts of 2013

We've had a fun year with you, blog-readers. We've chatted about what pizza has to do with our food pantry, the 44 amazing restaurants that gave back through Dining Out for Life, and our insanely awesome volunteers, who keep things chugging along. Plus, we got excited about chili and tried to convince you to volunteer once. Okay, maybe twice. We also touched on some really serious and important topics, like what one incredible young woman is doing to fight HIV stigma in our community, how we're working to support high-risk groups, and what our strategy is for successfully preventing the spread of HIV and empowering those affected by it.      

So, we thought it'd be fun to look back and see what your favorite posts were this year. Take a read through these top posts, and then tell us what you'd like to read about in 2014. Enjoy!

Top Posts of 2013 

5. Forty Five Degrees, Yogulatte owner long-time Damien supporter - April 23, 2013

4. Go see Naked Boys Singing and support The Damien Center! - February 8, 2013

3. Costume Ideas: The Disco Ball Edition - September 24, 2013

2. Why Santorini Greek Kitchen gives back - April 5, 2013

1. Do you need to get linked? - May 30, 2013

25 Stories: "We owe him compassion"

It’s 1986, and Dr. Woody Myers is standing before a crowd of medical professionals, media personnel, and concerned citizens in the auditorium at Indiana’s State Board of Health. As Indiana’s young, new state health commissioner, Myers knows this is his opportunity to show his community that Ryan White, the HIV+ 13-year old standing to his right, is just like any other kid. As the press conference to address White being banned from his Kokomo school gets underway, Myers, who’s only recently come to Indiana from the epicenter of the HIV epidemic in San Francisco, reaches over, puts his hand on Ryan’s head, and scruffs his hair.

And that one small gesture, he recalls, reminded people that Ryan was just a kid. “This is not the enemy. He is not a carrier of disease designed to infect you or anyone else. This is a little boy with hemophilia who got a very raw deal,” Myers remembers. “We owe him compassion, we owe him respect, we owe him our love, we owe him his dignity, we owe him the opportunity to be as normal as possible for as long as possible. And all the kid wanted to do was go to school and not be treated badly by people in his neighborhood.”

When White contracted HIV from a blood transfusion to treat his hemophilia, Dr. Myers explains, the health officer in Kokomo allowed local residents’ fear of their children contracting HIV through casual contact to determine his decision to ban the 13 year-old from school in Kokomo.

“From a public health standpoint, I couldn’t let that stand,” he said. “We told him, we know this is not spread by casual contact, so we support him going to school.” To get the message across, Myers held a press conference to show the public that “it was okay to be with people that had HIV.”

According to Myers, “people had done all kinds of awful things” to the Whites because of Ryan’s HIV status. Fear engulfed the small community of Kokomo. Gunshots were the last straw that led the family to move to Cicero, a community north of Indianapolis, where Myers and his team worked to make sure Ryan and his mother were welcomed and accepted. “Ryan wanted to go to school. That’s basically it,” he recalls. How did they do it? Through education, persistence, and a community of people willing to open their minds and hearts.

“The long and short of it is that on the first day of school there was a welcoming committee,” Myers says. “They came out and they hugged him when he came to school that first day. They just made him feel as if he were just part of the gang. And that was exactly what we wanted.”

As health commissioner in Indiana, Myers went on to put Indiana on the map as a leader in health education, not some “backwoods, can’t-think, hillbilly kind of state.” Today, we continue the physician’s crusade through education, prevention, testing, and programs that both empower those who have HIV and fight to prevent the spread of it. Join us today.

25 Stories: Colin Hammar

Many people in Colin’s generation haven’t lost friends or family to HIV thanks to new treatment options that significantly prolong life. “That’s going to be one of the changing factors of the younger generation born in the mid-80s and onward.” The sociology grad student thinks that this, coupled with the fear and stigma associated with the disease, has made many people distance themselves from the issue.

Colin also feels that there may be a cultural HIV white-washing. Many people perceive HIV/AIDS as a gay disease; that stigma still exists, though the most affected populations are changing. HIV is often introduced as an STD like any other, and Colin is frustrated that many schools do not teach that some genders, sexualities, and demographics are more at-risk. Often, the social history isn’t taught until college. This doubled-edged sword means that all populations are reached, but at-risk populations are losing out by not highlighting the history or reality.

It’s these attitudes and beliefs that inspired Colin to make a difference and become active on college campuses; he often brings in speakers and does educational prevention outreach.

“My work in my graduate program and my research has let me grab my own personal experiences…to be the voice and perspective [for the disease], which is traditionally left out in a lot of academic circles.”




Share your story with us! Leave a comment or email Brenden Hudson at bhudson@damien.org.

25 Stories: Rob Bullock

Rob Bullock was a social security adjudicator in the early 90s; at the time, The Damien Center had just started. There were no social security benefits for people with HIV, so many people were denied.

Rob knew that people were dying, and that they needed care. He began looking through the 5,000 page operations manual to try and find the secondary diseases that would help get people living with HIV the benefits they needed.

Through his hard work, Rob earned a reputation in the community as an advocate for people with HIV. He was soon asked to work for The Damien Center in 1992, where he oversaw most client-related activities. School systems were under pressure from parents who did not want their children receiving safer sex messaging; instead, Rob and The Damien Center were asked to provide presentations so that the students would get the information that would one day save their lives.

Rob remembered how there was (and still is) cultural pressure for men in the Midwest to get married and have children. Many married men would contract HIV from discreet sex with other men, and then have unprotected sex with their wives – thus passing on the disease.

It’s much better now that HIV isn’t a death sentence, but it’s still out there. “I don’t think we hear the HIV message as much as we used to because it’s not as imminent,” said Rob. “People aren’t dying as quickly.”


Share your story with us! Leave a comment or email Brenden Hudson at bhudson@damien.org.

25 Stories: Evelyn Myers

Rev. Earl Connor retired in 1986, but Evelyn knew he was working on something from the hints he dropped. “AIDS.” “AZT.” “Test positive.” When Earl asked Evelyn about properties for sale, she had no idea that she was about to help found what would become Indiana’s oldest and largest HIV/AIDS service organization.

Earl opened The Damien Center in June 1987 in an empty archdiocese building. “When we started, the phone never rang. Nobody was there, and nobody knew much about us,” said Evelyn. To help spread the word, the Center hosted an open house; because of the stigma surrounding the disease at the time, they had no idea if they would be picketed or if anybody would come.

After the open house, Evelyn saw the cavernous building grow into a bustling place with furniture, volunteers, and clients, led by the hardworking reverend. Together with a team of volunteers and a handful of staff, The Damien Center became the first truly coordinated effort to care for people who had contracted HIV.

Apart from The Damien Center, Evelyn was a quiet champion for HIV, in her own humble way; when the disease was new, she noticed that people would avoid those living with HIV in church. To combat the ignorance, she decided to lead by example and be the first to take the Eucharist after people with HIV. “I would like you to think that I knew I was on the cutting edge and doing something that was unique,” she said. “But I didn’t. I was just helping out a friend.”


Share your story with us! Leave a comment or email Brenden Hudson at bhudson@damien.org.

The Season of Giving

Did you know that we're the largest and oldest HIV/AIDS service organization in Indiana? Here are ten reasons to give a little extra this holiday season:

YOU can help make a difference!
Make a donation at www.damien.org/donate

#10: You can help serve the most people infected and affected by HIV in Indiana. Last year, we helped 1,230 people with HIV/AIDS; this holiday season, we expect to serve nearly twice as many people in December as we did last year.

#9: You can help end hunger. People living with HIV need nutritious meals to help their immune system fight the disease. We gave out over 150,000 pounds of food through our pantry this year.

#8: You can help shelter people with HIV. Stable, affordable housing helps people with HIV stay on medication. We helped house 70 families in 2011.

#7: You can help prevent the spread of HIV. We provided more than 2,000 free and confidential HIV tests so far this year - up from last year's total of 1,533.

#6: You can help keep young people safe from the disease; individuals 20-24 account for the highest rates of new infections. We reached more than 700 young people with information on how HIV is transmitted and how to keep themselves safe this year, and we expect that number to double in 2012.

#5: You can help end stigma and discrimination. We provide legal services for people infected or affected by HIV with discrimination issues, living and legal wills, and various other civil legal matters.

#4: You can help people with HIV get jobs. As medications get better, more people with HIV are living healthy lives they didn’t expect to have; we teach skills that help them reenter the workforce.

#3: You can help formerly incarcerated individuals receive interventions that reduce substance abuse and other risky behaviors. We help these individuals keep themselves and others safe from HIV.

#2: You can help link people with HIV to health insurance that makes life-saving medication affordable.

#1: You can help us end HIV. We distribute more than 5,000 condoms every year; without a cure, condoms are one of the only sure-fire ways we can stop the spread of HIV.