Kansas City, Missouri (Black-News.com)--African Americans make up 12% of the U.S. population, but they constitute half of those diagnosed with HIV, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

To give Kansas City’s African American community a forum to talk candidly about the disease that so disproportionately affects them, a new radio show devoted to the topic of HIV/AIDS is now airing weekly on the AM dial. The purpose of the show is to educate the Black community and to help recruit people of color to the HIV field.

About 40 shows have aired so far, and, "It’s working," said Gerald Palmer, host of "A Closer Look." Not only has he received comments from people at his church and on the street, Palmer’s secondary target group, health care professionals, have been requesting to be on-air guests.

Palmer is a minister, he has a degree in social work and he’s a research associate at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Nursing.

His passion for HIV/AIDS grew out of an experience he had five years ago when he worked as an HIV case manager. He was visiting a patient who was in the intensive care unit. Doctors were getting ready to disconnect life support.

"There was no family or church members around for his last hours," Palmer recalled. When he witnessed the patient die, he told himself he would make sure other people with HIV/AIDS did not die alone. So he is giving them a voice every Friday at 3:15 p.m. on KGGN Gospel 890 AM.

He said he chose a Gospel radio station because he knows that the best way to reach the Black community is through the church; and the best way to reach the church is through Gospel radio.

The 30-minute live show features HIV experts as well as people living with AIDS. Show topics have included youth and HIV, social stigmas on the disease, the churches response to the epidemic, etc.

There is only one other weekly radio show in the U.S. that focuses solely on HIV/AIDS in the African American community. It airs out of Miami, Florida.

While Kansas City’s HIV/AIDS radio show has proven successful since its August debut, challenges exist, Palmer said. "Especially on a Gospel station because sometimes you’re talking about sex and condoms," he said. Another challenge is people hesitating to call the show because of the stigma that still exists.

Funding for the radio show comes from a grant by the Midwest AIDS Training and Education Center of Missouri, which is located in the UMKC School of Nursing.

Did You Know:

o During 2001-2004, the rate of HIV/AIDS diagnoses for African Americans decreased, although the rate for African Americans was still the highest rate for all racial and ethnic groups.

o The primary mode of HIV transmission among African American men was sexual contact with other men, followed by heterosexual contact and injection drug use.

o The primary mode of HIV transmission among African American women was heterosexual contact, followed by injection drug use.

o Of the estimated 145 infants perinatally infected with HIV, 105 (73%) were African American.
Source: www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/aa/resources/factsheets/aa.htm.