Supported Sessions
Mobilize for action on sexually transmitted infections
Tuesday 17 September 11:00am - 12:30pm
Organizers: World Health Organization (WHO), International AIDS Society (IAS), and International Union against Sexually Transmitted Infections (IUSTI)
In partnership with IAS and IUSTI, this pre-conference on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) aims to unite a diverse group of stakeholders—including civil society, community leaders, public health and clinical experts, programme managers, and policymakers—to catalyze action targeting the elimination of STIs as a public health concern by 2030. The meeting serves as a pivotal platform to emphasize the significance of STIs within the broader context of global health and the global HIV response, to cultivate new collaborations, and to mobilize advocacy efforts.
Running alongside this major international scientific conference, the agenda will focus on expanding the global response through coordinated multisectoral networks, strengthening interactions between STI and HIV programmes, and acknowledging the interconnectedness of these health challenges. Through discussions and deliberations, participants and panelists will identify opportunities and key approaches to advance the WHO global STI targets by 2030.
Building on the momentum from the first forum in Berlin, Germany, following the World Health Summit 2023, and from the AIDS 2024 pre-conference in Munich, Germany, this meeting will outline concrete next steps to increase political commitment, community engagement and innovation in global health.
Ending Syphilis in Australia and the Pacific - ASHM Session
Wednesday 18 September 12:40pm - 1:55pm
This panel will bring together public health experts from Australia, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea for an overview of the syphilis epidemics in these countries, and to share insights about the work happening to respond to this public health challenge.
Participatory approaches in sexual health: A participatory workshop and launch of WHO/TDR practical guide
Wednesday 18 September 12:40pm - 1:55pm
Are you interested in using participatory approaches to enhance sexual health research? Join us for an exciting collaborative workshop at IUSTI 2024 where we will introduce key concepts related to participatory health research, provide an opportunity to experience several participatory approaches, and introduce open access resources focused on participatory health research.
More information about participatory health research can be found here: https://socialinnovationinhealth.org/health-designathon-guide/
Register now to secure your spot at this lunch session - limited spots available
Affiliate Organisation Session: Kirby Institute - Taking STI POC Testing to full scale, the time is now!
Wednesday 18 September 5:30pm - 7:15pm
Light canapes and refreshments will be provided between 5:30pm and 6:00pm, the session will start at 6:00pm.
This session will focus on sharing an overview of the establishment and evolution of the STI POC testing program (TTANGO), providing an opportunity to hear the learning and successes from participating health services. Followed by an opportunity to explore how these learning could be translated to other regions and/or settings.
Integrating Quality of Life into HIV Care: ’what can we do about it?' by NAPWHA and ViiV Healthcare
Wednesday 18 September 2:00pm - 3:30pm
International and local experts join community advocates to
debate the role of HIV clinicians in responding to poor quality of life, which
reflects clinical and social factors and demands novel tools and partnerships
beyond the clinic. Participants will learn about the PozQoL instrument and the
potential contribution of HIV Peer Navigators.
Testing for Mycoplasma genitalium; When and Whom?
Thursday 19 September 7:30am - 9:00am
Join Drs. Lisa Manhart and Jørgen S. Jensen in a discussion about Mycoplasma genitalium (M. gen), a prevalent, often misdiagnosed sexually transmitted infection.
When and whom to test varies with some guidelines recommending M. gen testing at first presentation with genital tract symptoms and others recommending testing only in cases of persistent/recurrent symptoms. Our speakers will discuss the rationale underlying current testing, test of cure recommendations and the pros and cons of each of these perspectives.
Register now to secure your spot at this breakfast symposium - limited spots available!
Thursday 19 September 12:45pm - 1:45pm
Join us for an interactive panel discussion with experts from around the world who will bring together perspectives from academia, patient care, the laboratory and public health to share their insights and experiences with diagnostics and STI care innovations.
Thursday 19 September 2:00pm - 3:30pm
- Scene Setting, Dr Dawn Casey, Deputy CEO, NACCHO
- Australian longitudinal HTLV-1 study – establishing community engagement, Yasmin Watts and Margaret Smith
- HTLV-1 prevalence in Australia, John Kaldor
- Development of the National HTLV-1 Clinical Guidelines for Aboriginal People, Nathan Ryder
- HTLV-1 testing – Australian and international advances and perspectives, Pip Hetzel
- International developments in HTLV-1, Fabiola Martin
Thursday 19 September 2:00pm - 3:30pm
- Culturally safe sexual health resources: Working collaboratively to find meaningful and respectful ways of sharing sexual health information, Paul van Polanen and Brenda Shayeb
- Community screening programs and delivering men’s health safely on four wheels, Roisin Steward
- The ANFPP is a client-centred outreach model – what are their team learning that can be transferable to other programs at Wurli, Natasha Pavlin and Micheala Mills
- Youth week – Maningrida style!, Jessica Gatti and Patricia Gibson
IUSTI AP: Current Status of Sexually Transmitted Infections in the Asia Pacific Region
Thursday 19 September
11:00am - 12:30pm
- HIV/STIs in the Pacific Islands, Catherine O'Connor, Kirby Institute, UNSW, Australia
- Update on HIV/STIs in Fiji, Rachel Devi, Ministry of Health and Medical Services, Fiji
- Extensively Drug Resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Monica Lahra, WHO CC for STI and AMR, NSWHP Microbiology Randwick NSW Australia and UNSW, Australia
- Emergence of sitafloxacin resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae in China, Meiping Ye, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, China
- Challenges in Managing STIs in South Asia, Kaushal Verma, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India
- Community Engagement to Address the Social Determinants of Sexual Health, Rayner Tan, National University of Singapore
IUSTI AP: Complexity of Urethritis and STD Syndromes in STD Populations
Thursday 19 September 2:00pm - 3:30pm
- Multi-omics signatures of bacterial vaginosis in Indian women and its clinical relevance, Apoorva Challa, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
- Mycoplasma genitalium and antimicrobial resistance : current status in southeast Asia region, Sunil Sethi, Dept of Medical Microbiology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research , Chandigarh, India
- Real-time PCR for BV diagnosis: optimising resources, Seema Sood, AIIMS ,New Delhi, India
- Recent status of antimicrobial resistance of M. genitalium and treatments for M.genitalium urethritis in Japan, Ryoichi Hamasuna, Shin-Kokura Hospital, Japan
- Non-Groupable ST11 Neisseria Meningitidis-Associated Urethritis in China, Pingyu Zhou, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, China
IUSTI AP: Clinical Issues and Research Advances in syphilis
Thursday 19 September 4:00pm - 5:30pm
- Why we need STI services?, Christopher Fairley, Monash University and Melbourne Sexual Health Centre
- A deep learning framework for personalized dynamic prediction of prognostic outcomes in neurosyphilis. The DEFEAT NS study, Huachun Zou, Fudan University, China
- Rapid increases in syphilis cases. especially in young women in Japan, Satoshi Takahashi, Sapporo Medical University, Japan
- Anal self-examination and new digital technologies for STI control, Eric Chow, Monash University, Australia
- Examination of Inequities in Syphilis Infections in Maaori Mothers and Their Infants, Frances Robbins, Auckland University/Waikato Hospital, New Zealand
Crowdsourcing
consensus for asymptomatic testing recommendations for MSM
Thursday 19 September 4:00pm - 5:30pm
Calling all IUSTI attendees to participate: Crowdsourcing your views on current policies on asymptomatic STI testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea in gay, bisexual and queer men?
We want to engage IUSTI delegates in a dialogue
Should frequency of asymptomatic testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea needed for Gay, Bisexual and Queer Men be reduced?
- Why or why not?
- What are the risks and benefits to changing recommendations?
- We want to know your views?
Participate in an online discussion using Polis being run by researchers at the University of Melbourne and University of Toronto. Polis is a real-time system for gathering, analyzing and understanding what large groups of people think in their own words. Polis works by allowing people to vote on statements put forward by others in their community about what they think should be done about an issue.
This conversation is open to all delegates whether you are a researcher, policy maker, clinician, or community representative or otherwise work in sexual health. You don’t need to be an expert on this topic to participate.
All contributions are anonymous and you can see a live map of the opinion landscape as the conversation evolves.
Can we get to a consensus? We’ll present the findings during the IUSTI conference on Thursday, September 19.
Calling all IUSTI attendees to participate: Crowdsourcing your views on current policies on asymptomatic STI testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea in gay, bisexual and queer men?
We want to engage IUSTI delegates in a dialogue
Should frequency of asymptomatic testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea needed for Gay, Bisexual and Queer Men be reduced?
- Why or why not?
- What are the risks and benefits to changing recommendations?
- We want to know your views?
Participate in an online discussion using Polis being run by researchers at the University of Melbourne and University of Toronto. Polis is a real-time system for gathering, analyzing and understanding what large groups of people think in their own words. Polis works by allowing people to vote on statements put forward by others in their community about what they think should be done about an issue.
This conversation is open to all delegates whether you are a researcher, policy maker, clinician, or community representative or otherwise work in sexual health. You don’t need to be an expert on this topic to participate.
All contributions are anonymous and you can see a live map of the opinion landscape as the conversation evolves.
Can we get to a consensus? We’ll present the findings during the IUSTI conference on Thursday, September 19.
Public-private partnerships to deliver antimicrobial stewardship
Friday 20 September, 12:15pm to 1:25pm
The ARC ITRP Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance takes on the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for Australia through a partnership between industry, researchers, and end users.
This session will focus on understanding the pathways to successful collaborations between academia, industry, and end-users.
Presentations:
- Accelerating the commercial pathway to transform antimicrobial resistance and stewardship
- Diagnostics to improve the precision of antibiotic use
- Thinking differently – Identifying new antimicrobials in new in-vitro models
- Economic evidence to understand the financial benefits of testing for AMR
- Resetting the societal value of AMR
Presentations will be followed by a panel of AMR Hub experts and partner investigators who will answer big questions from different perspectives including sexual health care, health finance systems, global NGO in diagnostics, global NGO in antibiotic development and the diagnostic industry.
This session is not one to miss! View the program and plan your attendance now!
Public-private partnerships to deliver antimicrobial stewardship
Friday 20 September, 12:15pm to 1:25pm
The ARC ITRP Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance takes on the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for Australia through a partnership between industry, researchers, and end users.
This session will focus on understanding the pathways to successful collaborations between academia, industry, and end-users.
Presentations:
- Accelerating the commercial pathway to transform antimicrobial resistance and stewardship
- Diagnostics to improve the precision of antibiotic use
- Thinking differently – Identifying new antimicrobials in new in-vitro models
- Economic evidence to understand the financial benefits of testing for AMR
- Resetting the societal value of AMR
Presentations will be followed by a panel of AMR Hub experts and partner investigators who will answer big questions from different perspectives including sexual health care, health finance systems, global NGO in diagnostics, global NGO in antibiotic development and the diagnostic industry.
This session is not one to miss! View the program and plan your attendance now!
"An interpretation of the layers of occupation of First Nations People (Gumbaynggirr/Bundjalung Naions) and their symbiotic relationship with flora and fauna on the mighty Clarence River"
Artwork: "Bindarray" - River by Deborah Taylor
We acknowledge that the conference is being held the traditional lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' continuing connection to land, water, and community and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. ASHM acknowledges Sovereignty in this country has never been ceded. It always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.