LIU Brooklyn Hosts Conference on HIV, Oct. 19

The challenges in communicating with HIV patients and their families is among the core topics to be discussed during an all-day HIV conference at LIU Brooklyn on Oct. 19. The event is free and open to the public.

New York City Assistant Health Commissioner M. Monica Sweeney — the author of Condom Sense: A Guide to Sexual Survival in the New Millennium — will give the keynote address at the free all-day conference, “HIV: New Society Challenges -- From Diagnosis to Aging,” to be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at LIU Brooklyn’s Metcalfe Hall, located at the corner of DeKalb and Flatbush avenues.

The event is sponsored by Selfhelp Community Services in collaboration with LIU Brooklyn’s School of Health Professions’ “Brooklyn’s Health” series and Brooklyn AIDS Task Force.

Topics will be of interest to those affected by HIV and those who provide care to HIV patients. Continuing education credit will be awarded to those who attend the conference. Dr. Sweeney, M.D., M.P.H., works in the health department’s Bureau of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control. She will speak on “What Everyone Needs to Know about HIV – From Novice to Expert.” A strong advocate for preventive medicine, she contends that “Health is not a priority in America. There are so many people with lives that are marginalized that health only gets attended to when it is threatened.”

Highlights of the conference include, “Challenges in Communicating with HIV Patients and Their Families” led by Dr. Amandia Speakes-Lewis, LIU Brooklyn assistant professor and coordinator of the M.S.W. degree program; “Selfhelp Special Family Home Care” with Phyllis Wahrmann, RN, administrator, Selfhelp Community Services; and “Innovations in HIV Prevention: A Discussion of PEP and PrEP,” Antonio E. Urbina, M.D., associate medical director, Center for Comprehensive Care, St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital.

Future events in the “Brooklyn’s Health” Series — each will take place at LIU Brooklyn —

Tuesday, Oct. 23 — “How Policies that Influence Health are Made,” featuring local legislators discussing the controversial role of policies in changing health behavior. (6-7:30 p.m., H.S., Room 107)

Tuesday, Oct. 30 – “Bike Lanes in Brooklyn,” part of the Public Health Advocacy, Policy, and Leadership course. A Campus-Community Course Connection event. (6-7:30 p.m., H.S., Room 230)

Monday, Nov. 12 — “Give Peace a Chance: War as a Public Health Issue” examines the impact of war on the soldiers and their families, the countries involved and world at large. A Campus-Community Course Connection event. (6-7:30 p.m., H.S., room 316)

Tuesday, Nov. 20 – “Domestic Workers/New Labor,” will examine workers’ Bill of Rights A Campus-Community Course Connection event. (6-7:30 p.m., H.S., room 230)

For further information or to register, call 718-488-1256 or visit http://brooklynshealth 2012.eventbrite.com.