Research

The National Centre in HIV Social Research conducts a range of research projects in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region related to HIV, viral hepatitis, injecting drug use, sexual health and Aboriginal health. Our research is supported by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, state and territory governments, and overseas donors (such as AusAID).

Our main research areas:

HIV and sexual health	Hepatitis C and illicit and injecting drug use
International health	Aboriginal health	Postgraduate research

Current projects

HIV and sexual health
	Gay community periodic surveys (Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Queensland & Canberra) e-male study (the role of the internet in building social capital for homosexually active men) Primary health care project on HIV and depression The interaction between sexually transmissible infections and HIV infection in homosexual men Feasibility of an national internet-based cohort study of men who have sex with men in Australia The Straightpoz study: men and women living heterosexually with HIV in NSW Who's calling? An analysis of calls made to the Pozhet info-line from 1993 to 2007 Qualitative interviews concerning key issues and experiences (QUICKIE) project Barriers to HIV testing among people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds Community periodic survey of culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Sydney Respondent-driven survey of sexual behaviours among gay men in Sydney, Australia: a pilot study Understandings of risk and HIV among men who have sex with men in Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales Living with uncertainty: creating the postmodern self in contemporary Australia

Hepatitis C and injecting and illicit drug use
	Periodic survey of drug use among young people National treatment service users project: Phase 2 Making decisions about hepatitis C treatment A study of post-interferon-based hepatitis C treatment experience Hepatitis C prevention – the real deal: automatic influences on injecting behaviour, Phase 2 Under construction: the social and cultural politics of hepatitis C in Australia Hepatitis C seroconversion: using qualitative research to enhance surveillance Pharmacy Fitpack survey UNSW hepatitis C vaccine initiative

International HIV and sexual health
	Strengthening HIV-related social research capacity in Papua New Guinea Strengthening HIV-related social research capacity in Timor Leste Strengthening HIV-related social research capacity in Indonesia HIV/AIDS behavioural surveillance and capacity development in Timor Leste: 2007 – 2009 Asia-Pacific Network of HIV Social Researchers Pacific Institute for HIV and STI Research Targeted HIV Social Research in Indonesia, PNG and the Pacific Australian Leadership Awards (ALA) Fellowships for “Strengthening HIV Social Research Capacity amongst Chinese HIV Social Research Leaders” National HIV/AIDS prevention project behavioural surveillance system (BSS), Sri Lanka The ART of Living: Rolling out antiretroviral therapy in Papua New Guinea Condom access and usage amongst young people in Vanuatu and Tonga The sexual attitudes and lifestyles of London’s Eastern Europeans (SALLEE) A rapid assessment of the HIV epidemic among men who have sex with men in Johannesburg and Durban, South Africa. 5-Centre HIV and AIDS research initiative (5-CHARI) AusAID Consortium

Aboriginal health
	Survey of knowledge, risk practice and access to services in Aboriginal people in NSW SEARCH: study of environment on Aboriginal resilience and child health Aboriginal patterns of cancer care (APOCC) Building research capacity for health interventions to imporve Aboriginal health

Postgraduate research
	Living with hepatitis C in Auckland and Sydney: a comparative study Male factors influencing participation in PMTCT programs in Tanzania The dynamics of shame: implications for the Drug and Alcohol Counsellor when working with women at risk Press ‘enter’: information technologies and writing of sex Understandings of parenting and parenthood among gay men involved in known donor insemination or surrogacy ‘Getting on with it’?: exploring the employment experiences of people living with chronic hepatitis C Impact and effectiveness of sexually explicit HIV/AIDS social marketing campaigns targeting the gay community Safe sex campaigns in Australia and New Zealand