Illinois: Group Offers Free HIV Testing

In a bid to combat HIV/AIDS in Chicago's West Side, several community groups are teaming up to create a mobile outreach program for those most at risk. The South Austin Community Coalition Council (SACCC), the Westside Health Authority, Haymarket Center and Test Positive Aware Network (TPAN) have launched "Taking It to the Streets," a campaign that includes a van that will travel to known hotspots for drugs and prostitution, offering HIV testing, counseling, and prevention services.

A particular focus for the campaign is men who have sex with men (MSM). "You have this MSM population who don't consider themselves gay, but are having sex with men as well as having sex with their spouses," said SACCC's Elce Redmond. "Those are the ones who are not going in for testing and spreading it even more."

According to Redmond, the outreach is targeting the area around Central Avenue and Lake Street. Last month, the program tested 25 people there and distributed 400 HIV/AIDS prevention packets that included condoms, a resource guide, and educational pamphlets.

The program is hoping to improve those numbers on Friday, when the van will be parked at the corner of Lake and Laramie from 1 to 5 p.m. In addition to rapid HIV testing, free refreshments will be provided.

"If people are not going to come to you, you got to go to them," said Richard Wallace, a TPAN outreach worker. Preventing HIV begins with education and access to testing, he said, adding that many people do not know where to go to get tested. "If more people knew their status… they would know what to do to protect themselves," Wallace said.

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