[A Closer Look] Testing for HIV available on campus

The first cases of the HIV virus were diagnosed and treated over
20 years ago at UCLA. Today, the university continues to take
strides in fighting the epidemic by encouraging and administering
testing for HIV on campus.

As part of the “I Know ““ And Knowledge is
Power” campaign, free anonymous HIV testing will be
administered in Bruin Plaza during World AIDS Day today. The
campaign, sponsored by the UCLA AIDS Institute, will administer HIV
testing in two vans from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Getting tested for HIV can be a difficult decision because there
are stigmas that are commonly associated with the virus such as the
perception that only gay men, people in Africa or sexually
promiscuous people can get infected.

“By making the testing free, quick and easily accessible,
I hope to make testing as routine as going to the dentist,”
said Edwin Bayrd, the executive director of the UCLA AIDS
Institute.

“Our point really is to remind undergraduates that
it’s important for them to know their HIV status and to
emphasize that the epidemic has moved well beyond the traditional
risk groups.”

According to Bayrd, 300,000 people in the United States are HIV
positive and do not know it, and statistically speaking this number
includes UCLA students.

Options for HIV testing include drawing blood or collecting a
sample of saliva. Both tests are brief and give results on site in
less than 30 minutes. Results can also be obtained by calling the
institute or through mail. Those who know their results receive a
red wristband with the message “I know.”

The red wristbands, similar to the yellow wristbands that Lance
Armstrong promoted for cancer awareness, are meant to make HIV
testing more acceptable to talk about even after World AIDS
Day.

“If you have them on, it’s a daily reminder of why
it is important to get tested. We’re going to give out maybe
15,000 or 20,000 of these out over the next year. We hope to
initiate 15,000 or 20,000 discussions about HIV testing,”
Bayrd said.

Sherri Lewis, an AIDS activist and speaker at the HIV testing
campaign, was diagnosed with HIV in the 1980s when the general
public saw testing as pointless because fewer treatments existed.
Today, more effective medical treatments are available.

“We’re trying to write a new chapter for a new
millennium with AIDS. We don’t have a cure, but we have
treatments. You can be healthy and HIV positive,” she
said.

Bayrd said it is important for people to know their HIV status
as soon as possible to prevent further transmission and start
taking care of their health. Dozens of service organizations will
provide counseling and support during World AIDS Day for people who
have tested positive.

The Ashe Center also offers HIV testing throughout the year.
“I would encourage anybody who feels that they have had any
risk of exposure of HIV to be tested,” said Michelle Pearson,
director of Ancillary Services at the Center. “It’s
just all a matter of taking care of yourself and being a good
citizen of the world.”