What is ATSIHAW?

What is ATSIHAW?

Each year in the first week of December, to coincide with World AIDS Day, we host Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander HIV Awareness Week – “ATSIHAW”.  The inaugural ATSIHAW was held in November 2014 to get a conversation going in our community about HIV prevention and the importance of regular testing for HIV.

The theme of ATSIHAW is “U AND ME CAN STOP HIV”.

ATSIHAW has proven itself to be a popular event – engaging our communities, as well as HIV researchers, doctors, health workers and policy-makers. Each year ATSIHAW events that aim to promote awareness of HIV are run in local community based organisations. Engagement is continuing to grow with the number of events reaching over 60 during the week of ATSIHAW in 2018, most hosted by Aboriginal community controlled health services.

The formal national launch of ATSIHAW 2019 was held as a breakfast event in Parliament House on 28 November 2019, hosted by Mr Tim Wilson MP – Chair, Parliamentary Liaison Group on HIV/AIDS, Blood Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmitted Diseases. 

For more information on HIV and ATISHAW, see SAHMRI’S booklet HIV and Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Communities in 2019.