Mersey Care faces criticism over sexual health awareness services

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The Armistead Center is under pressure from complainants who claim that the sexual health center has not provided its services.

The LGBT-friendly clinic on Hanover Street in Liverpool provides health services including STI testing and chemsex harm reduction groups.

Elsewhere, the clinic run by Mersey Care claims to offer outreach services to LGBT + venues across the city.

READ MORE: Positive Covid tests drop across Liverpool city region, but two areas see rise

However, when contacted by ECHO, a number of bars and clubs in Liverpool’s Pride area confirmed that they had not received any outreach service from the Armistead Center for two years.

Andrew Pankhurst, director of G Bar, told ECHO the center was providing free condoms and health information at the site before the coronavirus pandemic.

Andrew said: “Before Covid, our contact with them slowly started to wane.

“Normally they would come and deliver condoms. But that has stopped since.”

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A number of people visiting the G Bar while the club was operating at limited capacity asked Andrew for condoms, but the venue did not have any available.

He added: “You are thinking to yourself, is this person going to come home and make a stupid mistake?”

Despite the lack of services, Andrew hopes the Armistead Center can mend its relationship with Liverpool’s LGBT + community.

He continued, “You couldn’t put a price on the help they gave me as a youngster.

“It would be a shame if there were young people out there now and the Armistead Center not somehow involved in their lives.”

Elsewhere, the Armistead Center was also absent from this year’s Pride in Liverpool indoor festival which took place on Saturday, July 31.

Alan Wilkinson, who works at Lisbon, corroborated the allegations of absence.

He said: “It’s been almost two years since I’ve seen anything from the Armistead to Lisbon. No condoms or anything.”

Another complainant, who chose to remain anonymous, said: “The Armistead Center provided a full range of holistic services. Now they have been completely wiped out.”

The plaintiff pointed to Mersey Care’s takeover of Liverpool Community Health NHS Trust, which saw the Armistead Center join the county-wide trust.

They argued that this takeover and the move of the Armistead Center from Stanley Street to Hanover Street caused the reduction in services.

Mersey Care has responded to allegations of non-provision of outreach services.

A spokesperson for Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust said: All NHS organizations were required to review and adjust service delivery for COVID-19 lockdown to ensure the safety of service users, patients and staff.

During the pandemic, through the triage line, the service provided support, access to testing for sexually transmitted infections and contraceptive supplies for individuals. Condoms remained available in the wards on request.

The Armistead outreach service also prioritized its resources during this time and provided direct face-to-face support to the most vulnerable service users, organized focus groups for LGBT + communities, online virtual consultations and training sessions for educational service providers and professionals.

Unfortunately, staffing capacity prevented the team from actively supporting this year’s Pride Refresh event. The triage line has remained open and information on how to access support and services continues to be shared online.

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