A lot of IPT students get HIV through gay sex, a Family Physician reveals

SHAH ALAM - Most of the patients infected with HIV due to gay sex are among students of higher education institutes (IPT), a Family Physician revealed.

Dr Sakinah Sulong who revealed this described it as a great concern as it involved young people.

"It is not an exaggeration to say that in 100 of my HIV patients, the majority are young people who get HIV from same-sex sexual intercourse.

"One thing that is very troubling because these people are very young.

“Some are still students, mostly from IPT.

"It has come to the point that among the doctors, if the area where we work is a big city where there is an IPT, we will definitely get HIV patients who have same-sex sexual intercourse.

"When I ask my patients how were they exposed to this kind of sex, they said it's actually from the early stages," she said as a panellist on the ‘Disebalik Isu Bersama FY’ progamme moderated by Finaz Yunus, which was broadcasted live on Sinar Harian's digital platform on Friday.

The program which discussed the topic titled HIV, Gay & Malay also featured USIM Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Professor of Medicine Professor Dr Rafidah Hanim Mokhtar as a panellist and a gay HIV patient, known as Hakim Azman as a special guest.

In the meantime, Dr Sakinah also said that most of the HIV patients who were infected through the practice of same-sex sexual intercourse were also educated people as most of them admitted to being aware of the risks faced due to this lifestyle.

Hence, she said this group of patients was also seen to be more prepared when they were diagnosed with HIV.

"They seem to be ready and know that it is the result of their behaviour. We usually conduct counselling to manage HIV patients who are depressed and so on.

"However, these patients (HIV gays) know better about what they need to do, and what will happen to them for the next 10 years," she said.

She further explained that HIV patients who receive Antiretroviral Drug (HAART) treatment could live healthy lives to the extent that no HIV virus was detected in the blood and would not infect others if they had sex.

However, most of them denied that they were still involved in casual sex with different partners after being diagnosed with HIV.

"But there are also (patients) who consider it their way of life (casual sex) and they are proud to be gay," she said.