HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network


HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network

HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network’s Purpose:

The HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network is a group of: service providers from AIDS Service Organizations, service providers from agencies that serve people living with HIV/AIDS (PHAs), volunteers from AIDS Service Organizations and PHA community members. The primary purpose of the group is to help inform and support the development of new wellness programming initiatives at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) and in the PHA-serving community. This network will also allow for information and resource sharing between agencies and members, and it will create opportunities for collaborative wellness program planning and initiatives from a social determinants of health perspective. At least 25% of the network’s members will be PHA community members.

Wellness Project Mission Statement:

This project will strive to develop wellness initiatives and programming that will help support PHAs in self-directed holistic health management.

Wellness Project Goals:
  • To increase PHAs’ access to peer support and HIV/AIDS holistic health information
  • To increase awareness of and accessibility to wellness programming for PHAs
  • To utilize a broad wellness framework when developing new programming that includes the physical, emotional, mental, social, sexual and spiritual aspects of a person’s life, as well as the interactions between these dimensions
  • To decrease isolation and to help reduce the stigma experienced by PHAs
  • To promote skills building & leadership development for volunteers

Wellness Project Objectives:
  • To develop new forms of wellness programming to meet the complex holistic needs of PHAs, including workshops and presentations, to be facilitated by ACT staff, other service providers and community members across the PHA-serving community in various locations across Toronto
  • To support PHAs’ self-directed holistic health management by providing support and information on topics such as healthy eating, stress management, spiritual wellness, healthy sexuality, coping with medication side effects, harm reduction, etc.
  • To develop a resource on the implementation of holistic wellness programming for PHAs
  • To implement a skills building and leadership development program for volunteers

Role of HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network Members:
  • Attendance and participation at HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network meetings when possible
  • Remain informed of meetings’ discussions by reading minutes and responding via email or phone when required
  • Information and resource sharing between members & agencies
  • Communication between meetings via email related to agenda items when appropriate
  • Advisory role in wellness program planning and initiatives

Optional Roles for HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network Members:
  • Participatory role in program planning
  • Future program facilitation
  • Participation and/or lead in working groups – specific events, tasks, etc.
  • Participation in collaborations and partnerships with ACT and other agencies in wellness programming & initiatives

Meetings:

Network meetings will occur approximately once a month, with task groups forming and meeting as required.

Current HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network members include PHA community members as well as representatives from:

The HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network's work to date includes:


For more information on the HIV/AIDS Wellness Advisory Network or membership on the network, please contact 416-340-8484 ext 283.

The Wellness Project is funded by Ontario Trillium Foundation.