Community Members Engagement

This program recruits, places, and supports community members through a peer-based-approach so they are able to connect with others, learning specialized skills with an emphasis on job readiness meaningfully contribute to positive change, set goals, develop skills, access resources and ultimately.


Peer Outreach Programs

PHA Engagement Programs: 
Health Champion
The staff and volunteers of the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation Speakers Bureau work to correct the myths and misconceptions about HIV/AIDS. By sharing their experiences with the public, they challenge the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS by putting a human face on the disease. Through education, we hope to improve the acceptance of people living with HIV/AIDS in society. We also promote a strategy of HIV prevention, to help reduce the transmission of the virus.

Trained volunteers, who have taken the Finding your voice training, all of whom live with HIV/AIDS, conduct speaking engagements at public schools, colleges, universities, health centres, businesses, companies, correctional facilities and other social services.

If you have any questions about this program, contact the PHA Engagement Coordinator.

To have one of our amazing speakers come to your organization or school, please download our Speaker request form and fax to Speakers Bureau at 416-506-1404 or email.

Poz Prevention
The Poz Prevention program is an innovative program of PWA, adding to the scope and methodologies of HIV prevention programming. Its approach is built on PWA’s commitment to the health and well being of people living with HIV/AIDS. The Program utilizes staff and peer educators to provide peer consultations, service provider training, and social group discussions around sexual health and Poz prevention.

PWA outlines the agency role, understanding and overall position on Poz Prevention. See also Poz Prevention: Definition, Values and Principles.

PRLOGONH

 Funding for these Peer Outreach Programs was provided in part by the Pride and Remembrance Association through the Pride and Remembrance Foundation.



Resources
English
Poz Prevention – Service Provider Manual: knowledge and practice guidance for providing sexual health services to gay men living with HIV in Ontario
Pozitively Healthy: a gay man’s guide to sex and health in Ontario

Français
La Prévention Poz: connaissances et pratiques en matière de livraison de services de santé sexuelle aux homes gais vivant avec le VIH en Ontario

The Men’s Health Peer Navigator

The program’s goal is to help stabilize, strengthen and expand programs across the network of services while reaching out to a diversity of men affected by HIV/AIDS across the City.

The Program includes:

  • Peer Support.
  • Clinical Support.
  • Therapeutic Support.
  • Social Support.

Health Champion Peer Educators

The Health Champion program seeks to advance holistic, medical care and patient empowerment for PHAs through the meaningful engagement of PHAs in medical education. The program recruits, trains and supports PHAs as peer medical educators who train medical and healthcare practitioner students about the experiences of people living with HIV/AIDS and about how to engage PHAs in their own healthcare in a supportive, nonjudgement and empowering way devoid of stigma and discrimination.


Positive Women Empowerment and Resilience (POWER) Peer Support Program

The Peer Support program is a collaborative approach to providing diverse, innovative and practical support services for women (trans, cis and femme) living with HIV/AIDS in Toronto. It is a consortium of five AIDS service organizations, including The AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention (Black CAP), PASAN, PWA, and The Teresa Group. The Peer Support Program at PWA builds on the value, impact, and benefit experienced by women living with HIV  when they can receive support from other HIV-positive women and those HIV-positive women providing support.

POWER Project Peers speak several languages and will support and assist other women in navigating the social service system as follows;

  • Accompaniment to medical and other appointments
  • Immigration support
  • Housing support
  • Interpretation/Translation
  • Service referrals
  • Outreach/Facilitation
  • Food delivery from PWA’s Essentials Market
  • Social and emotional support
  • Advocacy
  • Information session about various available supports
  • Home and hospital visit/support
  • Interpretation/Translation
  • Women Support groups
  • Childcare etc.

Brochure: English  French  Spanish

Supports are not only limited to the above and can be adjusted depending on individual needs. To find out more about the POWER Peer Support Program or to request a Peer, contact the Circle of Care Peer Support Coordinator or phone at (416) 506-1400 ext. 210.