Other Activities

AIDS Medical and Technical Advisory Committee (AMTAC)

Dr Nigel Dickson, is a member of this Ministry of Health Committee that advises the Director-General of Health on a range of issues related to HIV/AIDS in New Zealand.

The AEG has been contracted by the National Screening Unit to provide monitoring and evaluation of the Universal Routine Offer HIV Antenatal Screening Programme. This programme commenced in Waikato District Health Board in March 2006 and will be progressively rolled out in other District Health Boards throughout the country. The Group is evaluating the process rather than the outcome of the screening programme, in particular, the uptake of HIV testing and the occurrence of non-negative results.

Dr Nigel Dickson, is a member of an international team that was successful in gaining funding for a five year research into the role of resiliency in responding to blood borne viral and sexually transmitted infections in indigenous communities. This is a joint project between Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The New Zealand arm is being led by Dr Clive Aspin, of Nga Pae o te Maramatanga, of the University of Auckland.

In 2007, Professor Charlotte Paul, Preventive & Social Medicine, Dunedin School of Medicine, chaired a working party established by the New Zealand Blood Service (NZBS) to review the criteria used by NZBS to accept or reject offers of blood donation as it particularly relates to behaviour and the risk of HIV infection. The report was released on Monday 16 June 2008.