September is Suicide Prevention Month. Unfortunately, suicidality is an issue that disproportionately affects LGBTQ people, especially youth and transgender individuals.

Monkeypox has just been declared a public health emergency by the White House as we’ve recently reached over 6600 confirmed cases in the United States. Notably, the largest portion of cases is in New York City. As of writing this, there are no confirmed cases of MPV in Cortland County, but there have been a couple of cases in Tompkins County. Here’s what you need to know…

Did you know that members of the LGBTQ community are more likely to contract Hepatitis A, B, and C? Hepatitis is a collection of viruses that can cause liver disease. Unfortunately, they’re viruses that many people have heard of but perhaps don’t fully understand, with a person dying every 30 seconds from a Hepatitis-related illness.

You may know the Human Immunodefiency Virus, or HIV, as a virus that attacks your immune system by gradually decreasing your CD4 white blood cell count until it falls below a certain threshold, leading to the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). You may also be familiar with how HIV has historically affected the LGBTQ community – especially gay and bisexual men – since the early 1980s, but you may not be aware of the current progress we’ve made toward HIV prevention and treatment. 

With an estimated 75% of Americans wearing some form of vision correction, it can be easy to overlook the importance of taking care of our eyes. While for many people, visual impairment is genetic or brought on by aging, there are certain measures we can take to preserve our vision and decrease the risk of eye diseases. This includes…

Did you know that at least 50% of Americans will contract a sexually transmitted infection, or STI? Many people are unaware of the commonality of STIs, such as chlamydia, herpes, trichomoniasis, gonorrhea, and HIV. This can lead to societal stigma, which in turn discourages folks from getting regular testing. STIs can be passed through any sexual contact, and no person is immune from risk. That said, there are many myths surrounding STIs, and with April being STI Awareness Month, let’s take some time now to review the facts…