Annual Review 2002-2003

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Annual Review 2002-2003

It is as the new Chair of the Board of GMH that I introduce its Annual Report for 2002 - 2003. The work of GMH, as the Report reveals is felt at both a local and an international level. Before referring to any particular part of it, however, I should like first to restate the philosophical basis of that work. This is to do with its gay positive and sex positive attitude in the promotion of gay men’s health. The original remit of GMH referred to HIV infection with the specific aim to find ways both to combat it and to inform men of the risk of unsafe sex. This remit has now extended to include all aspects of the health of gay men, not just their physical health, but also their psychological and emotional well-being. The work of GMH has thus increased in both range and volume over the last eight years.

The statistics against which this work should be measured tell a depressing story. I need refer only to one statistic here to give an example: syphilis infections rose by 63% in the U.K. Between 2001 and 2002. Dangerous infections such as syphilis are spreading so rapidly that the situation is described by the parliamentary select committee on sexual health as a crisis. Even if we feel ‘crisis’ to be an alarmist term, there is no doubt that the sexual health of Scotland - and of the U.K. as a whole - is in decline. Far too few resources are made available to the specialist medical units and other services that are trying to halt this decline. However, the story the statistics tell would make more depressing reading were it not for the kind of work GMH is involved in. GMH reaches out to the vulnerable, the abused, the sexually assaulted, to those who feel stigmatised or discriminated against. Sexual health is a sensitive and intensely personal subject which people, men in particular, find difficult to talk about. This is why GMH, which helps men of all ages, represents such an invaluable resource.

The beneficial impact of the services GMH provides is a testimony to the energy and imaginative reach of its staff and volunteers. A reputation for good practice has extended far beyond the boundaries of Lothian to Russia. The Board’s purpose is, in discussion with staff, to underpin this work: to formulate strategies the organisation can then put into practice; to oversee their development, and to help in the review of their projected outcomes.

Matters to do with sexual health are forever changing, usually for the worse; the antibiotic resistance of certain diseases, for example, is increasing. It might seem, against this backdrop, that GMH can never be successful. However, no-one connected with GMH harbours unrealistic aims. The behaviour of men can change for the better; there is statistical evidence of a welcome rise in the use of condoms. GMH contributes to that by distributing 2500 condoms a week.

In its practical philosophy, its intimate knowledge of the gay community and the range of services; GMH unquestionably plays a vital role in the sexual health not just of the Lothian region but of Scotland as a whole.

Alan MacDonald Chair

Annual Review 2002-2003