Dr. Sean B. Rourke, director of REACH Nexus at St. Michael’s Hospital’s MAP Centre For Urban Health Solutions helped secure the approval for both HIV self-tests available in Canada. (Photo: Eduardo Lima/Canadian Press)
The federal government has announced $5 million in funding for HIV self-testing, prevention and support services, with St. Michael’s hospital playing an important role in distributing 100,000 HIV self-tests to people who need them.
The announcement was made Thursday in Winnipeg by Dr. Joss Reimer, Canada’s chief public health officer, as Manitoba responds to HIV rates that are three times higher than the national average and has declared a public health emergency.
Dr. Reimer said advances in HIV treatment mean people living with HIV can live long, healthy lives, but knowing your HIV status remains the essential first step to accessing treatment, care and support.
“By expanding access to HIV self-test kits and community-based peer support, this investment will help more people receive an earlier diagnosis and connect with the treatment and prevention services that meet their needs—particularly in communities most affected by HIV,” she said.
Of the $5 million announced Thursday, $2 million will be used to purchase 100,000 OraQuick HIV self-test kits. OraQuick is Canada’s first approved oral-fluid HIV self-test. REACH Nexus, a research organization at St. Michael’s Hospital’s MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, led the clinical trials that helped get Health Canada’s approval of the test, announced earlier this year.
St. Michael’s Hospital is the exclusive distributor of OraQuick in Canada and will work with the federal and Manitoba governments and frontline agencies to ensure the self-tests reach people and communities that face the greatest barriers to testing.
Dr. Sean B. Rourke, director of REACH Nexus, called the new funding a “meaningful advancement in Canada’s efforts to end HIV/AIDS.” He said expanding access to HIV self-testing and peer-based support is particularly important for communities disproportionately affected by HIV, including Indigenous, Black and other racialized populations.
“Real health innovation means meeting people where they are and removing the barriers that stand between them and care,” said Dr. Rourke. “By bringing testing, prevention and care directly to people, we can reach communities too often left behind by traditional healthcare—and give everyone the opportunity to know their status, protect their health and access the care they need.”
Dr. Rourke and his team at REACH Nexus also led the clinical trials that helped Canada’s first HIV self-test receive regulatory approval in 2020. In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Rourke launched I’m Ready, a national HIV self-testing program that has since distributed more than 36,000 free HIV self-test kits across Canada and connected thousands of people to prevention, treatment and care.
He also previously led Community Link, a federally funded program that expanded access to HIV self-testing across Canada. Together, these initiatives have helped make low-barrier HIV self-testing available to more than 100,000 people.
The remaining $3 million in new funding will support peer workers, who will help connect people to testing, prevention and treatment services.
Shohan Illsley, executive director of the Manitoba Harm Reduction Network, said significant barriers continue to prevent people from accessing HIV testing and treatment.
“Expanding access to HIV self-tests and peer support services will help improve access to low-barrier testing, particularly in rural, remote and northern communities where stigma can have a significant impact on access to testing and linkage to HIV care,” she said.
The federal government says 2,300 new HIV diagnoses were reported in Canada in 2024, while an estimated 7,000 people are living with HIV without knowing their status.
By: Andrew Russell