Albany residents can learn their status on National HIV Testing Day

ALBANY — When it comes to HIV testing, it really is a matter of what you don’t know can hurt you — as well as others.

At a Thursday screening, area residents can learn their status at no cost and get information about what to do to prevent becoming infected or where to seek help if they are.

The National HIV Testing Day event will be held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Walgreens, 300 N. Slappey Blvd. About 200 people were tested at that venue last year.

Positive results on an HIV test is not the grim news it was when AIDS and HIV broke onto the scene in the early 1980s, said Remy Hutchins, infectious disease program coordinator with the Southwest Health District based in Albany.

“It’s a manageable condition,” she said. “With appropriate treatment, people with HIV can live long lives.”

The stigma of the disease — along with related homophobia — and cultural reluctance to discuss sex are among some the factors that make people reluctant to be tested or get accurate information about HIV, Hutchins said.

The South has seen the fastest-growing rates of new infections across the country for years, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

After AIDS and HIV infections initially were most prevalent in cities, rural areas are now seeing larger numbers based on the rate of infection, Hutchins said. The CDC recommends that everyone get tested at least once, and the frequency of testing needed can increase from once a year to more frequently, based on an individual’s lifestyle.

“It’s really important that people get tested because one in seven persons does not know they’re infected,” Hutchins said.

The health district provides free testing in each of its 14 county offices. When a person tests positive, the district provides a coordinator who can give information on where to go for treatment and medication to manage the condition.

The health district also distributes Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PreP) to high-risk individuals at its offices in Dougherty and Thomas counties.

In addition, condoms are available at no cost at health departments in dispensers, and in some cases they are available at cooperating businesses, Hutchins said.

Along with HIV screenings, participants on Thursday can get additional information. Everyone tested will receive a promotional bag and safer kits, and the first 25 tested will get free gift cards.

The idea is to promote HIV testing as a “regular part of health care,” Hutchins said.

Staff Photo