Sexual health services prepare for influx of tourists at WorldPride

Gay and bisexual men who take HIV prevention medication have been urged to ensure they have adequate supplies ahead of the WorldPride festival, as health services prepare for tens of thousands of tourists to arrive in Sydney next month.

Sexual health clinics have been advising those on pre-exposure prophylaxis, commonly known as PrEP, to ensure they have a current and filled script.

The Mardi Gras parade will return to Oxford Street in 2023 as part of the Sydney WorldPride festival.Credit: Dean Sewell

Matthew Vaughan, director of HIV and Sexual Health at ACON, said he was not expecting shortages of medication but the influx of tourists would likely lead to increased demand for sexual health services.

Australia is a world leader in the use of PrEP, a daily tablet which reduces a person’s risk of contracting HIV if exposed. Data from the Kirby Institute’s most recent HIV surveillance report showed about 35,000 people took it in 2021, attributing ongoing declines in the number of men who have sex with men testing positive to HIV to uptake of the drug.

NSW is on track to eliminate new HIV infections by 2025, five years ahead of the global target.

“This is the first time that WorldPride has been held in the southern hemisphere and when we think about the countries in our region, many still criminalise homosexuality and do not have access to HIV testing or PrEP,” Vaughan said.

“We want to make sure that we’ve got access available for people. We’ve been working closely with the local health districts to make sure there is access and also education opportunities.”

Festival organisers expect about 500,000 people to attend next month’s WorldPride event, including 78,000 domestic and international tourists.

A NSW Health spokesperson said sexual health services would open for longer hours during the festival, in preparation for increased demand.

Vaughan encouraged attendees to have a sexual health check before the festival as well as book in for an mpox – formerly known as monkeypox – vaccine if they were eligible, noting it needed to be given as two doses four weeks apart.

“We’ve done really well in Australia to prevent high rates of mpox, but we are aware a lot of the places people are travelling from have had higher rates,” he said.

The NSW Health spokesperson said about 26,800 vaccine doses had been administered in NSW by December 19.

Alexis Apostolellis, chief executive of the Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine, said it would be running specific training for GPs and practice nurses ahead of WorldPride, with a focus on HIV and other STI testing, HIV prevention, how to support a patient who receives a positive HIV diagnosis and where to find sexual health services in Sydney.

“In the lead up to WorldPride, it’s more important than ever that clinicians in Sydney feel confident to talk to their patients about how to prevent, test for and treat HIV and other STIs,” he said.

WorldPride Sydney: festival major events

• Saturday, February 18: Festival begins
• Sunday, February 19: Mardi Gras Fair Day at Victoria Park
• Friday, February 24: WorldPride opening concert headlined by Kylie Minogue
• Saturday, February 25: Mardi Gras Parade returns to Oxford Street
• Sunday, February 26: Domain Dance Party headlined by Kelly Rowland
• Saturday, March 4: Bondi Beach Party headlined by Nicole Scherzinger
• Sunday, March 5: Pride March over the Sydney Harbour Bridge
• Sunday, March 5: Festival ends with Rainbow Republic music concert at The Domain