Questions answered in this video include:

1. What unique characteristics of HIV make it dangerous and incurable?
2. What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?
3. How common or prevalent is the HIV virus in our society today?
4. What are the main ways HIV is transmitted from person to person?
5. What about casual contact such as hugging or sharing a drinking glass with someone who is HIV infected; can you actually acquire HIV in this way?
6. Do certain sexual acts or activity pose a greater risk for HIV transmission then others?
7. Have programs such as needles exchanges or safe injection sites been shown to decrease HIV transmission?
8. In North America do most major cities have safe injection sites?
9. Is it possible for an HIV positive individual to carry on a sexual relationship with someone who is not HIV Positive without transmitting the disease?
10. Is it possible for a HIV positive female to get pregnant and not pass along the virus to her child?
11. What are the main strategies for an HIV Positive pregnant woman to take?
12. What symptoms does an individual with HIV experience as a result of their infection?
13. Since the immune system is so compromised by this infection are there any specific or characteristic long-term complications of an HIV infection?
14. Where can someone go to get an HIV test?
15. For someone who has currently been diagnosed as HIV positive what are the first lined drugs used for the management of this disease?
16. What are the current reliable and accurate sources of information for those affected by HIV?Where can individuals affected by HIV turn to for support?
17. Where can individuals affected by HIV turn to for support?

Dr. Ameeta Singh completed her undergraduate medical degree in the United Kingdom in 1989, followed by an internal medicine residency and infectious diseases fellowship at the University of Alberta, completed in 1996. In 2002, she completed a Masters of Science in Epidemiology at Harvard University. She was the consultant for sexually transmitted and blood borne infections to Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW) from 1998 to 2008, and has been the Medical Director of the Capital Health region’s STD Centre since 1998. She maintains an HIV and STI outpatient practice and a limited general infectious diseases practice, and holds an appointment as Clinical Associate Professor with the University of Alberta’s Division of Infectious Diseases.

More information on HIV/AIDS can be found at the following websites:

1. The Public Health Agency of Canada: http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/aids-sida/index-eng.php
2. The Canadian Aids Society: http://www.cdnaids.ca/
3. The Canadian Aids Treatment Information Exchange: http://www.catie.ca/eng/home.shtml
4. AIDS.org : http://www.aids.org/

Questions answered in this segment include:

1. How is H1N1 different from the seasonal flu virus?
2. Is H1N1 more dangerous than the seasonal flu?
3. What are common symptoms to look for with the swine flu?
4. How long do these symptoms last?
5. How does a physician determine if someone has come down with the swine flu?
6. How is H1N1 transmitted?
7. Why the “swine” in “swine flu”?
8. Who is considered “high risk” and why?
9. How does the swine flu vaccine compare to the seasonal flu vaccine?
10. What are some good preventative strategies to avoid getting the swine flu?

 This interview is with Dr. Sarah Forgie, a medical professor of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Alberta. Dr. Forgie is the coordinator of the undergraduate infectious disease education block at the University of Alberta’s school of medicine, is extensively involved in infectious disease-related research, and is widely recognized as one of the most innovative medical educators in her field.