The HIV Podcast

This week Sarah and Jess travel to Malawi for the latest episode of African Voices, exploring the country's response to HIV and the vital work of the National Association of People Living with HIV and AIDS in Malawi (NAPHAM). As always with African Voices, this episode looks beyond the headlines to celebrate resilience and the people creating real change in their communities.

Sources

Home - napham

HIV/AIDS in Malawi - Wikipedia

Malawi - Wikipedia

HIV and TB Overview: Malawi | Global HIV and TB | CDC

African Voices is a year-long series from The HIV Podcast, sharing perspectives from across the African continent.

How to get involved:

We’re inviting people living with or affected by HIV to share short voice notes about what’s happening in their country, what the world needs to understand, and what education they want to share. These voice notes may be played on the podcast as part of the series.

Episodes will be released monthly, on the last Friday of each month

Voice notes may be played on the podcast

Send a voice note (max 5 minutes, no minimum) to: 07727 666791

Each country has a submission deadline, see image for details

If you’re from one of the 12 countries featured, we’d love to hear from you.

How to take part

Please send us a voice note (maximum 5 minutes, no minimum) to:

07727 666791

In your recording, please include:

• Your name (or a preferred name if you would like to remain anonymous)

• Your connection to HIV (for example: person living with HIV, peer educator, counsellor, activist, doctor, community worker, volunteer)

• The country you are in

Then tell us:

What do you want the world to know about HIV in your country?

This could include access to care, stigma, funding cuts, community realities, or anything you feel the world should understand.

What education would you like to share?

A myth to bust, a message for others, or knowledge that could help support your community.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Deadlines for submissions by country 2026

August 21st - Zambia

September 18th - Zimbabwe

October 23rd - Botswana

November 20th - Lesotho & Eswatini

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the third and final episode of our Russia series, Sarah and Jess explore how war is affecting people living with HIV, with a particular focus on reports of the military recruitment of people living with HIV and hepatitis.

Support The HIV Podcast

Sources

HIV/AIDS in Russia - Wikipedia

Germ warfare. The spread of chronic diseases in the Russian army is rapidly becoming an epidemic threatening society as a whole — Novaya Gazeta Europe

“A Hero Without Limits”

Russia spiralling into an HIV crisis

New soldiers are now being recruited directly from AIDS centres in northern Russia

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Sarah and Jess continue their three-part journey through Russia's HIV story. In episode two, they examine the scale of the epidemic, explore HIV prevalence across the country and the challenges faced by those living with HIV in Russia.

Support The HIV Podcast

Sources

HIV/AIDS in Russia - Wikipedia

Germ warfare. The spread of chronic diseases in the Russian army is rapidly becoming an epidemic threatening society as a whole — Novaya Gazeta Europe

“A Hero Without Limits”

Russia spiralling into an HIV crisis

New soldiers are now being recruited directly from AIDS centres in northern Russia

Lord Guy Black announced as new Chair of Terrence Higgins Trust for ‘final push’ to end new HIV cases in the UK by 2030

Holly Johnson Becomes Patron of The Sussex Beacon - The Sussex Beacon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sarah and Jess begin a three-part journey through Russia's HIV story. We travel back to the community where the country's first major HIV outbreak unfolded, exploring the events that changed countless lives and the lasting impact still felt today.

TW: This episode contains discussion of suicide and HIV-related stigma, which some listeners may find distressing

Support The HIV Podcast

Sources

HIV/AIDS in Russia - Wikipedia

Country Profile – Positive Destinations

Three decades after ‘Western HIV plague’ hit USSR, this tiny community is still coming to terms with the devastation and lost children | The Independent | The Independent

A11 The 1988 Elista outbreak and the epidemiology of HIV subtype G in Russia - PMC

UNAIDS is deeply saddened by the death of Vadim Valentinovich Pokrovsky | UNAIDS

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sarah and Jess head to Mozambique for the latest episode of African Voices, exploring the country's response to HIV stigma and the inspiring work of local LGBTQ+ activists using creativity and visibility to encourage HIV testing and challenge discrimination.

As always with African Voices, this episode looks beyond the headlines to celebrate resilience and the people creating real change in their communities.

Sources

LAMBDA Association

Lambda (Mozambican organization) - Wikipedia

AIDSfree: Mozambique’s drag queen battling stigma to encourage HIV testing | The Independent | The Independent

African Voices is a year-long series from The HIV Podcast, sharing perspectives from across the African continent.

How to get involved:

We’re inviting people living with or affected by HIV to share short voice notes about what’s happening in their country, what the world needs to understand, and what education they want to share. These voice notes may be played on the podcast as part of the series.

Episodes will be released monthly, on the last Friday of each month

Voice notes may be played on the podcast

Send a voice note (max 5 minutes, no minimum) to: 07727 666791

Each country has a submission deadline, see image for details

If you’re from one of the 12 countries featured, we’d love to hear from you.

How to take part

Please send us a voice note (maximum 5 minutes, no minimum) to:

07727 666791

In your recording, please include:

• Your name (or a preferred name if you would like to remain anonymous)

• Your connection to HIV (for example: person living with HIV, peer educator, counsellor, activist, doctor, community worker, volunteer)

• The country you are in

Then tell us:

What do you want the world to know about HIV in your country?

This could include access to care, stigma, funding cuts, community realities, or anything you feel the world should understand.

What education would you like to share?

A myth to bust, a message for others, or knowledge that could help support your community.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Deadlines for submissions by country 2026

July 24th - Malawi

August 21st - Zambia

September 18th - Zimbabwe

October 23rd - Botswana

November 20th - Lesotho & Eswatini

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Needle exchanges. A public health success story? A political battleground? Or a bit of both. This week Sarah and Jess are travelling back to the 1980s to explore how a radical idea born during the HIV crisis helped save thousands of lives and shaped the UK's approach to harm reduction.

Sources

history of needle sharing and the development of needle and syringe programmes

Syringe-exchange-has-it-worked.pdf

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did Edinburgh end up being dubbed the "HIV capital of Europe"? In this episode, Sarah and Jess head back to the 1980s to uncover the story behind one of the most surprising chapters in HIV history. We explore how one city found itself at the centre of the epidemic, and helped change the response to HIV forever.

Sources

'Patients used to come here to die, now they come to live' - BBC News

How Edinburgh became the Aids capital of Europe - BBC News

Historical Context | HIV/AIDS

"Take Care With Sex" [pink and black], 1990s | ArchivesSpace Public Interface

Scottish AIDS Monitor - Wikipedia

South Africa commits $72 million in bid to shed its status as the country with the world's largest HIV epidemic | Business Insider Africa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, the tables have turned! Long-time listener and friend of the podcast Charlotte Leach has taken over hosting duties and put Sarah and Jess firmly in the hot seat, testing their podcast knowledge, revisiting some memorable moments, and chatting all things HIV.

A huge thank you to Charlotte for all the thought, planning and preparation that went into the 'Charlotte Leach Takeover'.

Sources

HIV Long-Term Survivors Awareness Day June 5

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sarah and Jess head to Uganda for the latest episode of African Voices! We hear about the realities of HIV in Uganda, the progress being made, and the challenges that still remain, while spotlighting the incredible work of the Uganda Village Project, a grassroots organisation helping improve access to healthcare, HIV education, testing and support within rural communities.

As always with African Voices, this episode looks beyond the headlines to focus on people, resilience, and the organisations creating real change on the ground.

Sources

Uganda Village Project - Uganda Village Project Facilitating Public Health in Uganda

Uganda - Wikipedia

https://globalfund.finance.go.ug/hiv/

https://www.parliament.go.ug/news/4215/aids-related-deaths-drop-64-percent-uac

https://www.unicef.org/uganda/what-we-do/hiv-aids

African Voices is a year-long series from The HIV Podcast, sharing perspectives from across the African continent.

How to get involved:

We’re inviting people living with or affected by HIV to share short voice notes about what’s happening in their country, what the world needs to understand, and what education they want to share. These voice notes may be played on the podcast as part of the series.

Episodes will be released monthly, on the last Friday of each month

Voice notes may be played on the podcast

Send a voice note (max 5 minutes, no minimum) to: 07727 666791

Each country has a submission deadline, see image for details

If you’re from one of the 12 countries featured, we’d love to hear from you.

How to take part

Please send us a voice note (maximum 5 minutes, no minimum) to:

07727 666791

In your recording, please include:

• Your name (or a preferred name if you would like to remain anonymous)

• Your connection to HIV (for example: person living with HIV, peer educator, counsellor, activist, doctor, community worker, volunteer)

• The country you are in

Then tell us:

What do you want the world to know about HIV in your country?

This could include access to care, stigma, funding cuts, community realities, or anything you feel the world should understand.

What education would you like to share?

A myth to bust, a message for others, or knowledge that could help support your community.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Deadlines for submissions by country 2026

April 17th - Kenya

May 22nd - Uganda

June 19th - Mozambique

July 24th - Malawi

August 21st - Zambia

September 18th - Zimbabwe

October 23rd - Botswana

November 20th - Lesotho & Eswatini

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sarah and Jess look at how pop culture shapes the way we see HIV and the brilliant campaign from Casey House that recreated a “lost episode” of Friends to help tackle stigma....because sometimes the fastest way to expose stigma, is to place it right in the middle of shows people thought they knew by heart.

Sources

People living with HIV in Ireland write to their younger selves in heartwarming campaign • GCN

The HIV+ Episodes - Casey House | Campaigns of the world

Why a Nonprofit's Edit of Friends Shows Chandler Getting HIV

The One Where a Specialist Hospital Portrayed Famous Sitcom Characters with HIV | LBBOnline

About Us | Casey House

The restaurant kitchen where everyone has HIV: 'We want to challenge stigma' | Canada | The Guardian

Big Fucking Deal. A Short Film by Casey House.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.