Upcoming Events

Retrospective Cohort Study Webinar 

Thursday, October 24th, 1PM – 2PM (CT)

Register Now at: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/9yk23y2

Join Dr. Zulma Rueda as she discusses her recently published study: “Sex differences in houselessness, injection drug use, and mental health conditions among people newly diagnosed with HIV in Manitoba, Canada from 2018 to 2021”. Manitoba saw the highest number of new HIV diagnoses in the province’s history in 2021 and is the only Canadian province not meeting any of the previous UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets. The goal is to describe sex differences and syndemic conditions.

Dr. Zulma Rueda, Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Sexually Transmitted Infection- Resistance and Control at the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at the Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba. Zulma studied medicine and did her PhD in Epidemiology at Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia. She worked at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana until she moved to Canada. In Colombia, she studied tuberculosis among people deprived of liberty in Colombian prisons, the etiology and diagnostics of pneumonia in children and adults that required hospitalization, and HIV and tuberculosis among people experiencing houselessness. Currently, she leads the Exposome Lab and the AllTogether4IDEAS team based in Winnipeg. Her main research is focused on HIV, sexually transmitted infections, pneumonia and tuberculosis with a syndemic and intersectional lens rooted in community-based research. She loves epidemiology and strongly believes in “Research into Action: Sharing Evidence for Policy- and Decision-making”. The AllTogether4IDEAS research team included scientists, clinicians, the Manitoba HIV leadership team, people with lived experience, Indigenous scholars and leaders, laboratory experts and community-based organizations.

Stigma Training Initiative Webinar

Wednesday, October 30th, 1PM – 2PM (CT)

Register now at: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/9pxtewt

Join Srinath Maddur and his team of people with lived experience as they discuss the Stigma Training Initiative at Nine Circles Community Health Centre. Learn about the project’s goals, successes, challenges, and key learnings from the first year of implementation. Focused on empowering health and social service professionals in Manitoba, the project aims to build knowledge and capacity for safer, more inclusive, and less stigmatizing sexual health and harm reduction services.

Srinath Maddur is a Health Educator at Nine Circles Community Health Centre and the Coordinator for the Stigma Project, specializing in sexual health and harm reduction. With extensive experience in HIV interventions and capacity building, he is passionate about community engagement, tackling stigma, and supporting community-led initiatives that meaningfully involve marginalized groups. The stigma workshops are co-facilitated by individuals with lived experience, who will also join him for the presentation, enriching the dialogue and fostering a deeper connection to the topics discussed.

HIV Doula Work Webinar 

Tuesday, November 5th, 11AM – 12PM (CT)

Register Now at: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/rs2rb98

Kotawêw Indigenous HIV/STBBI Doula Project (KIHDP). Meaning “making fire” in Cree, Kotawêw aims to better understand experiences of Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQIA+ living with or impacted by human immunodeficiency virus/ sexually transmitted and blood born infections (HIV/STBBIs). Outcomes of this work will be used to inform the creation of a curriculum to train Indigenous HIV doulas. Indigenous HIV doulas will work to address gaps in health care systems and community spaces. This includes incorporating Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing into their work. Led by a team of 6 Indigenous women researchers who are all actively working in the Indigenous community of Winnipeg, Kotawêw is grounded in Indigenous epistemologies, ways of knowing, doing and understanding, such as visiting, storytelling, ceremony and connection to the land. 

Candace Neumann is a Red River Métis doula, artist, student, sundancer, cedar bath conductor, and community helper from Treaty 1 Territory, Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her spirit name, Leads With Light, guides her in her community work, and is grounded in her relationships with her family and her community. She comes from a long line of fierce aunties and carries on the tradition with her 13 nephews and nieces, and 1 great niece. Alongside Indigenous midwife Melissa Brown, Candace co-founded Zaagi’idiwiin Indigenous Doula Training. Together they have trained hundreds of doulas from Indigenous communities across Turtle Island. As a doula, Candace volunteers her time to support Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQIA+ birthing people whenever she can. Candace is a full-time student in the Master of Social Work in Indigenous Knowledges program at the University of Manitoba. And a member of the Kotawêw research team through Ka Ni Kanichihk and the Village Lab at the University of Manitoba.

Melissa, a 2-Spirit/Indigiqueer individual, proudly holds citizenship with the Manitoba Métis Federation, tracing her ancestral roots to the Red River Settlement, Northern Manitoba, and Saskatchewan. She also embraces the identity of a person with lived experiences, having resided in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside for more than a decade, where she faced challenges related to addiction and homelessness. Melissa has emerged as a prominent national activist within the HIV/STBBI (Sexually Transmitted and Blood-Borne Infections) community, leveraging her strength-based narrative to address the disparities that Indigenous individuals living with STBBIs encounter. In addition to her position as the Manager of the Village Lab, Melissa serves as the Community Coordinator at the Waniska Centre for Indigenous STBBI Research and works through their community partner Ka Ni Kanichihk based in Treaty 1 territory. Simultaneously, she is pursuing her education as a student in the Inner-City Social Work Program within the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba, actively working towards her Bachelor of Social Work degree. In her spare time, Melissa generously volunteers her efforts with the Nine Circles Community Health Centre, where she serves on the Board of Directors.