The Legacy of Dr. Peter
How Dr. Peter's Diaries changed the perspective of Canadians.
In the early 1990's Dr. Peter shared with CBC viewers his continuing struggle with AIDS.
The early struggle against HIV/AIDS was a time marked by rampant discrimination, stigmatization, and shame. In the 1980's, AIDS sufferers were facing what was largely an unknown disease that seemed to be prevalent among homosexual men. As a result, AIDS sufferers not only had to deal with declining health, but also, many times, with the rejection of families, friends, and communities. It was only as AIDS sufferers began to share their personal struggles with the disease and the public became better informed about the spread of AIDS, did blatant harassment and discrimination of HIV positive individuals begin to subside.
One individual who played a significant role in bringing awareness to the public was Dr. Peter Jepson-Young. Dr. Peter, as he was affectionately called, was diagnosed with HIV in the late 1980's. As the disease progressed into AIDS, Dr. Peter decided to use his personal tragedy to educate the public on AIDS. And so began the Dr. Peter Diaries. On the Early Evening News on CBC, people at home saw two-minute clips of Dr. Peter talking about his experiences as the disease progressed. The public got to see the personal bravery and overwhelmingly positive attitude of Dr. Peter as he adapted to a myriad of challenges, both personal and physical. We saw Dr. Peter talk about his plans for the future, his blindness, his parents' acceptance of his disease and his homosexuality, and the everyday challenges he faced as he navigated his way through the world as his condition grew noticeably worse. The 111 episodes spanned a two-year period and ended just two weeks before Dr. Peter's passing.
The Dr. Peter Diaries was a popular segment followed closely by many. Because of Dr. Peter's honesty, viewers felt a closeness from having shared in his struggles and developed a compassion for AIDS sufferers that had been sorely missing for so long. However, Dr. Peter's legacy does not end with the diaries.
Before his death, Dr. Peter established the Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation, which eventually gave rise to the Dr. Peter Centre in Vancouver, Canada. The Centre has a day health program and a 24-hour resident care program, which provides health and other support services to HIV/AIDS sufferers who are deemed "most at risk for deteriorating health."
For more information on the Dr. Peter Centre, please go to www.drpeter.org and to view the Dr. Peter Diaries, please go to www.cbc.ca/drpeter.
