Grzegorz Jezierski

HIV/AIDS · Sexual Health · Advocacy

At the intersection of knowledge, lived experience, and community voice.

Grzegorz Jezierski — HIV/AIDS expert and advocate, photo: Steven Doyle / PLHIV Documentary

photo: Steven Doyle / PLHIV Documentary

About

I have been living with HIV since 2018. When I received my diagnosis, I was in my forties, in the middle of a life that wasn't simple — I had experience with chemsex and several years of intensive self-searching behind me. The diagnosis came as a relief: I finally understood where my chronic fatigue was coming from.

I started treatment immediately. I have been undetectable ever since — which means I cannot transmit the virus to others. This principle, known as U=U (Undetectable = Untransmittable), is one of the cornerstones of my work: I strive to ensure that every person living with HIV I work with understands U=U and reaches undetectability as quickly as possible.

I became one of the first Buddy Polska volunteers to publicly disclose their HIV status. At the time, I was still working at Johnson & Johnson, where I spent 14 years in roles including strategic marketing and patient engagement across Central and Eastern Europe.

Today I coordinate projects, advise institutions, and represent the perspective of people living with HIV at the European level. I hold a PhD in Neurobiology (Otto von Guericke University, Magdeburg, 2008), a certified HIV/AIDS counsellor qualification, and I am currently completing a Master's degree in Psychology. In 2023, I was awarded the Red Ribbon by the Polish Ministry of Health. I am affiliated with the Polish Scientific AIDS Society and the European AIDS Clinical Society.

Projects

Lambda Warszawa · Coordinator

Poland's first nationwide peer support programme for gay and bisexual men recently diagnosed with HIV. Volunteers living with HIV accompany newly diagnosed individuals in the first weeks after diagnosis — providing emotional support, navigating the healthcare system, and answering questions that are hard to ask a doctor.

350+
clients since
programme launch
18
active
volunteers
7
cities
in Poland
A quality of life study using the WHOQOL-BREF scale showed statistically significant improvement after 3 months of participation — strongest in the domains of psychological well-being and social relationships.

Funded by: AIDS Healthcare Foundation, GSK, EEA/Norway Grants, National AIDS Centre.

Foundation for Social Education · Coordinator

The Polish edition of a European advocacy platform operating for over 10 years. A multi-stakeholder initiative bringing together the community of people living with HIV, NGOs, public health institutions, clinicians, and industry — working to improve the HIV care cascade in Poland: from testing to sustained treatment engagement.

Bridging Care 2025–

Plan International Poland in collaboration with FEDERA Foundation · SRHR/HIV Specialist

A project addressing the sexual and reproductive health needs of people from Ukraine with refugee experience in Poland. Expert input into SRHR service delivery frameworks and training materials for healthcare professionals.

In March 2026, I co-facilitated — together with Michał Pawlęga — a full-day training for healthcare professionals: Providing sexual health services in a gender-sensitive, culturally responsive and migration-inclusive way (Warsaw, 28.03.2026).

Funded by the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

Foundation for Social Education · Certified HIV/AIDS Counsellor

Pre- and post-test counselling at voluntary HIV, HCV and syphilis testing sites, result delivery, crisis intervention, and efforts to support rapid linkage to care for those testing positive.

As part of broader collaboration with FES, I also contribute to projects including: HIV/STI testing in prison settings, HIV training for foster care professionals, and HIV training for those working with people experiencing homelessness.

EATG 2021–

European AIDS Treatment Group · Member, Chair of DMAG

EATG is Europe's largest patient-led HIV organisation, active since 1992. I serve as Chair of the Development and Membership Advisory Group (DMAG) — an advisory body responsible for evaluating membership applications, monitoring member engagement, and overseeing EATG's compliance with its constitution and internal regulations. DMAG advises the Board of Directors and the General Assembly, and notifies the Board in cases of constitutional breach. I am also a member of the Combination Prevention Committee (since 2024) and a graduate of the STEP-UP Training Academy (2021).

Selected publications and presentations

2026
Everything Worth Knowing About HIV and Sexual Health ↗ Jezierski, G., in collaboration with M. Kurzyk-Olędzka. Warsaw: FEDERA Foundation / Plan International Poland, 2026. Available in Polish and Ukrainian.
ISBN 978-83-966138-9-9
2025
Harm reduction philosophy in prevention and psychotherapy for people engaged in chemsex ↗ Serwis Informacyjny UZALEŻNIENIA [Addiction Information Service], no. 4 (112) 2025 (co-author: M. Brodzikowska)
Peer support initiative for gay men recently diagnosed with HIV Person-Centred Care Advocacy Academy: HIV in Europe, International AIDS Society, Paris
Does every sex under the influence count as chemsex? XXXII Conference "Living with HIV in Family and Society"
Challenges, problems and solutions in HIV during the Polish EU Council Presidency Co-authored chapter in White Paper: Healthcare Policy Recommendations, Institute for Social Development
Modern HIV and STI prevention technologies — mechanisms, efficacy, and accessibility: What should sexologists know? Polish Sexological Society Conference "Seksuologia 2025" (co-authors: M. Pawlęga, M. Sapuła)
PS04: Social and gender inequities in accessing care and prevention — session co-chair (with Harriet Langanke) European AIDS Clinical Society Conference 2025, Paris
Roundtable: Community-based and participatory research in the field of HIV — panel discussant European AIDS Clinical Society Conference 2025, Paris
2024
Why Do We Need Activism? HIV/AIDS Activism: Education, Prevention and Rights ↗ Pozytywne Życie / Academy of Positive Life, December 2024 (in Polish)
2024, 2026
Scientific Committee, HIV Drug Therapy Glasgow HIV Glasgow 2024 and HIV Glasgow 2026 (8–11 November 2026, Glasgow)
2023
Scientific Committee, European AIDS Clinical Society Conference 2023 EACS Conference 2023
"Buddy Polska": community-driven program for peer-to-peer support of PLHIV European AIDS Clinical Society Conference 2023
Integrating approaches to older people living with HIV: Community Speak EACS Conference 2023
2022
The Buddy Polska programme as a strategy for effective linkage to care for people living with HIV XXIX Conference "Living with HIV in Family and Society"

Media

Work with me

I work at the intersection of community and the healthcare system, collaborating with NGOs, public institutions, and the private sector in the following areas:

Contact