HIV training day brings healthcare, the third sector and the authorities together

The national HIV training was already organized for the 24th time in May. It is a speciality created at HUS for professionals working with HIV and the only one organized in the Nordic countries.

“The training day helps us promote and standardize the quality of HIV treatment in Finland,” says Associate Professor, Chief Physician Jussi Sutinen from the Inflammation Center.

”The training day helps us promote and standardize the quality of HIV treatment in Finland.”

The training updates knowledge related to HIV and improves communication between healthcare staff, the third sector and the authorities, which is very important from the point of view of patients with HIV.

In addition to physicians and nurses from hospitals, the participants of the training day also include substance abuse workers, representatives of prison healthcare, pharmacy staff, laboratory staff, and institutes and organizations working with HIV, such as the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Finnish Red Cross and Hivpoint.

“The views on HIV have been quite passionate and the different actors have had an incomplete understanding of each other’s work. Thanks to the training, this has not been a problem for decades anymore. People find the day important, and we have received good feedback,” says Sutinen.

Discussing a complicated patient case together

The program of the training is diverse and has been planned carefully. Year after year, the permanent favorite of the training day has been THL’s epidemiological overview of the HIV situation in Finland. New treatment methods and research results are also discussed. 

“Shared training has been very useful. On one day of the year, experts from different fields can focus in depth on only one topic and bring their knowledge of HIV up to date. Some of them have already attended the training for 24 years,” Sutinen says.

"On one day of the year, experts from different fields can focus in depth on only one topic and bring their knowledge of HIV up to date."

Another popular part of the training is the annual review presenting the previous year’s notable academic studies on HIV. Important information was also received from the Stigma Index of HIV patients, which was conducted as an online survey.

“In addition, the five university hospitals take turns providing an educational and complicated patient case for discussion. This year, the case was from Oulu. Other topics, such as the treatment of other illnesses in patients with HIV, are also discussed in the training,” Sutinen explains.

Activist for the homeless and athletes as an expert by experience

Like on previous training days, an expert by experience was among the speakers also this year. Ari ”Huli” Hulden spoke to nurses about the topic From social exclusion to inclusion – trust and hope supporting recovery.

“Huli is a top guy! He was a substance user and homeless in the past. Today, he has been awarded for helping others and has among other things played football in the Homeless World Cup. He has also organized city tours to areas where HIV was spreading at the turn of the millennium.”

Cholesterol medication to all HIV patients?

In the training, physicians treating HIV can also discuss updating the patient care guidelines.

“For example, HIV increases the risk of cardiac events, and we should therefore consider whether cholesterol medication should automatically be started for all patients with HIV who are over the age of 40. Evidence of this has already been provided in an extensive placebo-controlled trial. Patients with HIV are also at higher risk of anal carcinoma. Should they have routine anal Pap smear tests or endoscopies?” Sutinen lists examples.

"HIV increases the risk of cardiac events, and we should therefore consider whether cholesterol medication should automatically be started for all patients with HIV who are over the age of 40."

The training is financed by companies manufacturing HIV medicines and it is free for the participants.

“We are grateful to all participants, speakers and sponsors who have made this event possible. I hope it will also be possible to organize the training in the future so that we can continue to improve the quality of HIV treatment in Finland,” says Sutinen.

Text: Tiina Tuominen