Scores of people gathered at the Brian Lara Promenade, Port-of-Spain, yesterday to have themselves tested for HIV. The Ministry of Health provided ten free testing sites as it participated in Caribbean HIV Testing Day.
Most of the people gathered said they simply wanted to know their status, as they believed knowing if they were infected earlier might mean having a chance of a longer life. As the lines continued to grow, a representative of the North West Regional Health Authority got on a microphone and began urging passersby not to be afraid and to stop and be tested. The ploy seemed to work as even firemen and policemen in uniform took the time to get tested. Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan said he believed more men needed to have themselves tested as he spoke at the launch of the Ministry of Health's activities for the day. "The thing about it is, we are focusing on the males. What has been found is that men do not come for screening or testing," he added.
Khan said he had discovered women take a more proactive stance. "Women, on the other hand, tend to test themselves quite early and competently," he said. He believes this is so because women have a natural maternal instinct to protect their children. He added: "Men tend not to know what to do, and as result of it, if they do have HIV, they are spreading it." This is why it was so important that everyone get tested so if the disease is discovered early it can be treated with proper drugs which are available at hospitals, he said. He added that people with HIV who needed the medication would never be considered a burden on the State.
Khan also urged men to take advantage of the many testing facilities available at health clinics. He added that the HPV vaccine should be ready for distribution by the end of October and there were no worries about side effects as it had been around for sometime. Khan said there had been new initiatives, like the introduction of "mystery shoppers" in drugstores, to help bring about the changes needed in the health sector.
