Burnett Foundation Aotearoa

The Burnett Foundation Aotearoa (formerly the New Zealand AIDS Foundation (NZAF)) is New Zealand’s national HIV prevention and healthcare organisation. Its funding is derived from grants, donations and the Ministry of Health.[1]

The Burnett Foundation Aotearoa national office in Auckland
NZ AIDS Foundation 'Love your condom' campaign on Auckland pride parade in 2016

The Burnett Foundation has a vision of ‘a world without AIDS’ and aims to achieve this by preventing the transmission of HIV and supporting people affected by HIV and AIDS.

History

Founded in 1985, the New Zealand AIDS Foundation has grown from the response of New Zealand’s gay communities to the impending HIV epidemic. It grew from the national AIDS Support Network established in 1984 by Bruce Burnett, Bill Logan and Phil Parkinson.[2]

From its earliest days as a grassroots movement, the NZAF provides a New Zealand response to HIV, bringing history, passion, knowledge, and diversity to fight the emerging trends of the HIV epidemic.

During 2009, the NZAF introduced the NZAF HIV Prevention Plan 2009-2014;[3] a significant review and redesign of the population health programme. The plan includes a clear focus on building a condom culture in New Zealand. Get it On![4] is the new social marketing programme developed and supported by the NZAF that is committed to doing that. An important part of this programme is the largest gay community event in New Zealand, the Get it On! Big Gay Out.

In June 2022 NZAF rebranded to the Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, in part to honour Bruce Burnett, one of the first people living with AIDS in New Zealand, but also to reflect the evolving work that the organisation does.[5]

Programmes

The Burnett Foundation provides health and support services to people with HIV to maximise their health and their ability to maintain safe sexual practice,[6] and HIV prevention programmes targeted at the communities most at risk, including HIV and syphilis rapid testing and sexual health clinics. The Burnett Foundation also undertakes research, strategic analysis and policy advice.

The Burnett Foundation National Office is in Auckland, and there are regional centres in Christchurch and Wellington. The NZAF employs more than 40 staff and has well over 100 regular volunteers. There are also NZAF-trained professional contractors providing HIV and syphilis rapid testing and counselling in many other regions across New Zealand. Outside of New Zealand, the NZAF manages an international development programme working with partners in the Pacific committed to the rights and health of Pacific men who have sex with men and transgender people.

Health Promotion

The Burnett Foundation's Get it on! program uses the Big Gay Out festival as an avenue to promote safe sex and develop condom culture in New Zealand. A survey administered during the 2012 Big Gay Out festival determined that those who stayed longer were more knowledgeable and positive toward condom culture and felt that the Get it on! message was an empowering one. Survey participants also said the program "helped to educate men about safe sex" and "helped them feel good about having safe sex." [7] In 2014, Get It On! was dropped and LYC was adopted as the main message. Love Your Condom (LYC) is New Zealand Aids Foundation’s social marketing programme for gay and bisexual men. It addresses a complex mix of attitudinal, behavioural and social change amongst a community that can be difficult to define and reach. The LYC Social Marketing team talks about the programme’s history, the challenges they face and what keeps them loving what they do.[8] In 2017, New Zealand Aids Foundation dropped Love Your Condom and created a new campaign called Ending HIV. It has a goal of ending new HIV transmission in New Zealand by 2025. The campaign highlight key points including:[9]

  • Playing safe. Which means safe sex with the use of condoms and taking PrEP.[10]
  • Testing Often. Most HIV transmissions happen with people who don't know they have HIV and have unprotected sex. Testing often will diagnose people with HIV and get them onto treatment which will help stop spreading HIV.[11]
  • Treat Early. Treating early not only protects personal health, but it also reduces the chance of transmitting HIV to another person.[12]
  • Ending HIV Stigma. Stigma refers to prejudice and discrimination towards people living with HIV, their friends, partners and whānau. Even though HIV stigma was at its peak during the early days of the AIDS epidemic, many people living with HIV still experience prejudice on a daily basis.[13]

References
  1. "Ministry of Health NZ".
  2. "Bruce Burnett - AIDS prevention pioneer - Queer History New Zealand". www.gaynz.net.nz. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  3. "New Zealand AIDS Foundation - Our Services". Archived from the original on 2 June 2010. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  4. "Great Safe Gay Sex Information Website for Gay Men in NZ from L.Y.C". getiton.co.nz.
  5. "Our New Name - Burnett Foundation Aotearoa". www.burnettfoundation.org.nz. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  6. UNGASS Country Progress Report New Zealand Jan 2008-Dec 2009
  7. Toledano, Margalit; Riches, Murray (2014). "Brand alliance and event management for social causes: Evidence from New Zealand". Public Relations Review. 40 (5): 807–814. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2014.09.001.
  8. "Inside NZAF: Love Your Condom". Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  9. "NZAF's new campaign 'Ending HIV' aims to eliminate new HIV infections by 2025". Archived from the original on 19 February 2019. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  10. "Whats Safe Sex". Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  11. "All About Testing". Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  12. "Treating Basic". Archived from the original on 19 February 2019. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  13. "We Can End HIV". Retrieved 18 February 2019.
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