*Trigger Warning: This episode of the podcast touches on topics involving suicide and bullying*

In Singapore, the social stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS remains a significant challenge, lagging behind the rapid advancements in medical science. This persistent stigma, rooted in fear and prejudice, hampers efforts towards a more inclusive and informed society.

In the second episode of the fourth season of IPS’ On Diversity Podcast, our host Liang Kaixin, Associate Director at the Institute of Policy Studies and a former journalist, delves into this critical issue with Dr Rayner Tan, Assistant Professor at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, and Terry Lim, Associate Director of Outreach Education and Testing at Action for AIDS.

Their discussion revolves around the enduring misconceptions about HIV, the vital role of campaigns and sexual health education in dispelling these myths, and strategies like HIV self-testing kits to encourage early detection, especially for high-risk groups.

Where to get help:

Samaritans of Singapore Hotline: 1767

Institute of Mental Health’s Helpline: 6389 2222

Singapore Association for Mental Health Helpline: 1800 283 7019

Action for AIDS: 6254 0212

You can also find a list of international helplines here. If someone you know is at immediate risk, call 24-hour emergency medical services.

Find out more about HIV and AIDS in Singapore:

• CNA (2 February 2019): Commentary: Public attitudes of HIV have not moved beyond narratives of fear, prejudice from early years of global epidemic
• CNA (4 November 2021): Commentary: Could the use of COVID-19 self-test kits and vending machines be replicated for HIV testing?
• CNA (1 December 2022): ​​​​​​​'They used to physically recoil': How stigma around Singaporeans with HIV changed over the years

About our guests:

Rayner Kay Jin Tan, Assistant Professor, 
Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore

Dr Rayner Kay Jin Tan is an Assistant Professor at the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and a sociobehavioural researcher by training. His research interests revolve broadly about the social determinants of health, community engagement, implementation science, and health equity of vulnerable communities.

Rayner was a recipient of the Fulbright Visiting Research Scholarship for the academic year 2022/2023 and is receiving training in implementation sciences as a fellow of the HIV, Infectious Diseases, and Global Health Implementation Research Institute (HIGH-IRI) of the Washington University in St. Louis. He is currently deputy editor of a leading HIV scientific journal, the Journal of the International AIDS Society and a perspectives editor at the BMJ journal, Sexually Transmitted Infections. He also actively contributes to the organising and scientific committees of the International AIDS Society and International Union Against Sexually Transmitted Infections (IUSTI) conferences.

He currently is the president of Project X Society serving the health and social needs of sex workers, and a Director at The Greenhouse Community Services Limited, a charity providing substance use recovery services for marginalised groups in Singapore. He also currently serves as the Vice President for the Society of Behavioural Health, Singapore and a co-lead at SG Mental Health Matters.

Terry Lim, Associate Director, Outreach Education and Testing
Action for AIDS

Terry Lim has been working with AfA for over 12 years leading its heterosexual outreach work and yet is still learning and growing in this ever-changing environment especially as we deal with the new normal. Terry sees himself as a connector and a bridge, taking the policies and big picture on HIV, digesting and understanding them, and then translating it on the ground to the target audience. He has found some success in doing this to achieve and bring about change in behaviour over the years.

More from On Diversity

• Season 4 Episode 1: The Dual Challenges of Poverty and Single Motherhood with Carrie Tan, MP, Founder of Daughters of Tomorrow and Elizabeth Quek, Programme Manager at AWARE
• Season 3 Episode 9: Being Biracial in Singapore with Shane Pereira, Research Associate at IPS and Dave Parkash, Co-Founder at Fook Kin Restaurant
• Season 3 Episode 8: Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination with Sher-li Torrey, Founder of Mums@Work and Kalpana Vignehsa, Senior Research Fellow at IPS
• Season 3 Episode 7: Palliative Care for the Young and Old with Dr Chong Poh Heng, Medical Director at HCA Hospice Limited and Tay Jia Ying, an end-of-life doula and Founder of Happy Ever After
• Season 3 Episode 6: Social Worker Burnout with Louis Ng, MP for Nee Soon GRC and Cindy Ng-Tay, Director of Home at Children’s Aid Society
• Season 3 Episode 5: Leaving the Law Profession with Andrew Chan, Partner at Allen & Gledhill LLP and Michelle Yeo, Of Counsel at LVM Law Chambers LLC
• Season 3 Episode 4: Racism at Work with Dharesheni Nedumaran, Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, APAC, at Mediabrands and Shamil Zainuddin, Research Associate at IPS Social Lab
• Season 3 Episode 3: Ableism at Work with Cassandra Chiu, a vision impaired counsellor and advocate for PWDs, and Justin Lee, Senior Research Fellow at IPS