World Sexual Health Day is an awareness day managed by the World Association for Sexual Health (WAS), a global advocacy organisation committed to promoting best practices in sexual health. Celebrated annually on September 4th, World Sexual Health Day attempts to break down social and cultural barriers associated with sexuality and to promote positive sexual health around the world. This year, the theme is “Turn it on: Sexual health in a digital world”, which inspires the need to awaken awareness of sexual health rights, while also recognising the harms and violations of sexual rights in the digital sphere.
This World Sexual Health Day we will be sharing quality, reliable and up to date sexual health information, services and resources. Meridian supports our communities to live full, healthy and sexually fulfilling lives. We do this through a range of coordinated and community services detailed below.
Online Safety
Cruising online for hookups and relationships can be fun. But, experience tells us that we need to take our own safety seriously when we engage with others online.
Social and dating apps have been used by criminals to target people for robbery and violence. Many people also report experiencing abusive or racist language, breach of privacy, and other antisocial behaviour online.
To get more of what we want and less of what we don’t want online means being aware, setting boundaries and taking some sensible precautions.
Go to our Online Safety page to read a few tactics to keep you safe.
100% Confident Hookups
There are lots of different options when it comes to looking after your sexual health, and all of these options are called ‘safer sex practices’. Some safer sex practices include: regular sexual health testing, using barrier methods like condoms and dams, PrEP, PEP, U=U, and even things like talking about consent, boundaries, and e-safety. Many of these practices work the best when they’re used together. We encourage you to use these strategies in your regular sex life to keep you and your partners safer. Look through the links below for more information about how to be 100% confident when hooking up.
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Sexual Health Testing
Due to the current lockdown, our in house Sexual Health Testing clinic, STRIP Clinic is temporarily closed. Canberra Sexual Health Centre remains open by booked appointment only after an initial phone assessment. Phone assessment is available Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday between 9am and 4:30pm and Wednesday between 12:30pm and 4:30pm only. Same or next day appointments are available for urgent care. Call (02) 5124 2184. If you want general information you can check the Canberra Sexual Health centre web page.
Safer Sex Product Sales
Due to COVID, Safer Sex Product Sales is currently suspended until further notice.
Meridian stocks a wide range of safe sex products at competitive prices, available for individual purchase or bulk purchases. You can add items to your cart and pay for them online. Our staff will prepare your order and notify you when your items are ready for collection from our office in Turner.
Please note: All items must be collected from our office in Turner. We are unable to ship products.
For large purchases (more than 1000 items), please allow additional time for stock/packaging.
Please note: All sales are final once collected. Products purchased from our store cannot be refunded or exchanged once you have collected them, due to the sensitive, perishable nature of these products.
To find out more about our safe sex supplies or to speak directly to a team member, please contact us.
PrEP, PEP & U=U
HIV medications offer effective strategies to prevent HIV transmission.
PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) is a highly effective preventive medication to protect a person from contracting HIV. It should be actively offered to people who are at risk of HIV infection. To determine a person's suitability for PrEP, providers need to obtain a thorough sexual and drug-use history at baseline and at each 3-monthly review.
PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis) is a 28 day course of HIV medication that is effective in preventing HIV infection if started within 72 hours of exposure. The key to PEP is accessing it as soon as possible after a potential exposure to HIV. PEP can be accessed from a local sexual health clinic, or emergency department. Go to www.getpep.info for more information.
U=U (Undetectable=Untransmissible) is a method of treatment as prevention by which people living with HIV who maintain a plasma HIV RNA (viral load) of <200 copies/mL with antiretroviral therapy (ART) are unable to sexually transmit HIV to their partners. Other methods of prevention should be used in the first 6 months of treatment and until a viral load of <200 copies/mL has been documented.
PrEP, PEP, and U=U are methods to prevent the transmission of HIV, these methods will not prevent the spread of other STIs.