Dr Rupert Whitaker is one of the co-founders of the Terence Higgins Trust, the charity at the forefront of the fight against HIV and Aids for over forty years. On Wednesday September 25 he shared his story during a Rye Arts Festival talk. It was an emotional evening, with the audience in the George listening in awe of a man who’s achieved so much and helped so many.
It didn’t feel like that when the charity began: “We were really reviled. Hate messages on the answerphone. Newspapers full of hate. A government that wasn’t interested. There were six of us at the beginning and there was real anger. People were just expected to die.”
In a wide ranging conversation with Si McGurk, Rupert Whitaker discussed his own personal challenges and the many illnesses faced over the years, standing up for others living with HIV, his work within the health sector at home and abroad, and his current position working with the Tuke Institute which looks at the effectiveness of the health care sector.
So what’s his solution for the NHS? “There’s so much more we could do to help people stay well, rather than treating each illness in isolation. So many live with chronic illnesses but the system works against understanding how to help people get well and stay healthy. Part of the problem is that clinicians have too much power in how the NHS is run.”
The talk also included a discussion on caring for older LGBTQ+ people, a theme picked up earlier in the day at another Rye Arts Festival event. Nathan Evans read from his book One Last Song which tells the story of two very different gay men finding love in a care home. The book has been longlisted for the Polari Prize.
Image Credits: Natasha Robinson .