Sexual health workgroup
The Sexual Health workgroup is dedicated to promoting sexual and reproductive health in Estonia. With us you can train as a lecturer for sexual health seminars and give schoolchildren engaging, evidence-based seminars on a range of sexual health topics. For those who would rather work with adults, there is a separate route into pleasure-related subjects through the Orgasm Lab. Students interested in social activism also find work here, since we are active in advocacy and in defending access to sexual health services. At the same time we do not forget our own members’ wellbeing, so we often hold enjoyable internal evenings and joint events such as film nights and pole dancing sessions.
We have two main sexual education projects — sexual health seminars for schoolchildren, and the Orgasm Lab, which is aimed more at young adults. Training for sexual health lecturers takes place in autumn and is open to anyone who wants to come. You can become an Orgasm Lab lecturer once you already have a fair amount of experience with schoolchildren.
Workgroup services: Orgasm Lab, sexual health lectures.
How to join? Get in touch with the workgroup lead: nora@eays.ee
Major events
HIV/AIDS Day
The HIV/AIDS Day event takes place every year on 1 December, and each year we have approached it a little differently. In 2019, for instance, we ran a campaign encouraging people to get tested free of charge at their family doctor. Estonian public figures such as Hendrik Sal-Saller and Helen Kõpp took part. Normalising testing matters because, on the worse projections, up to 40% of HIV-positive people in Estonia are unaware of their status — which means people may pass the infection to a partner without suspecting it.
In 2020 we held an information evening for medical students at which an HIV-positive person shared their experiences of the healthcare system. On one hand we could be glad at the great progress since the 1990s; on the other, they also shared fairly sad and recent experiences with healthcare workers. Knowing how to treat an HIV-positive patient properly matters for a future doctor, because it helps prevent life-saving treatment from being broken off.
In 2022 we again held an information evening, this time led by infectious diseases doctor Kerstin Aimla. We discussed the spread of HIV, the main risk groups and, of course, treatment and prophylaxis.
Since HIV prevalence is currently highest among heterosexual middle-aged people, we have been thinking about how to reach that group. As a student organisation, that is quite hard. So if you would like to think it through with us, come to one of the Sexual Health workgroup’s meetings in the autumn semester, where we will certainly be discussing it.
IDAHOBIT
IDAHOBIT stands for the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia — an international day dedicated against discrimination against and hatred of LGBT+ people. It is marked every year on 17 May. On that day in 1990 the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from the international classification of diseases.
IDAHOBIT has a different international theme each year, though we have kept the freedom to choose our own. In 2021, together with the Estonian LGBT Association, we held an information evening on the gender recognition process in Estonia, involving trans people, a representative of the association and a gynaecologist-endocrinologist who works on gender recognition. In the past we have held an information evening on the Registered Partnership Act, a film night at Genialistide klubi, and a Facebook profile picture campaign.
Activity photos
