CO “100% Life” is participating in the first International Testing Week
From November 23 to 29, 2020, Ukraine is joining the first International Testing Week. This event was launched by Coalition PLUS, the international network to fight AIDS and viral hepatitis of which CO “100% Life” is a member. International Testing Week aims to raise public awareness of the importance of testing, as it is the first step in the response to epidemics.
In Ukraine, testing for HIV and hepatitis is available. You can get rapid tests for viral hepatitis and HIV for free with the support of your family doctor. You can also use the option of rapid testing based on NGOs.
CO “100% Life”, together with the Public Health Center, has developed the map of hepatitis testing sites link. Free HIV and hepatitis testing are available at these healthcare facilities.
Now everyone in Ukraine also can order an oral HIV test at home. It is now possible to be screened, namely to determine one’s own risks of HIV infection and order a free oral HIV test, using the “I want to be examined” option on the prozdorovia.in.ua website. The website will ask the user to fill in a questionnaire to know about his/her own risks of HIV infection and order the test at home or help to find the nearest testing site in the city.
It is important to remember that hepatitis is curable in more than 90% of cases. The main thing is to diagnose it in time and start treatment. In Ukraine, effective drugs for the treatment of hepatitis C are purchased at the expense of the state budget.
People with HIV who take antiretroviral therapy live long lives. HIV treatment is lifelong. It is free for patients and guaranteed by the state.
“As a person, who has overcome hepatitis and controls HIV, I must say that to know about the disease is to have a map of how to overcome it,” said Dmytro Sherembei, Head of CO “100% Life”. “Timely testing is vital to initiate treatment and stop disease transmission. Unlike the new challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, humanity has already learned to deal with hepatitis and HIV epidemics. We must not neglect the opportunity to protect ourselves. Timely diagnosis saves lives.”
International Testing Week will last from November 23 to 29, 2020. You can learn about activities in other countries on the website of the International Network to Fight AIDS and Hepatitis.
Coalition PLUS network actively advocates for expanded access to community-based testing at national and international levels with a focus on testing by and for vulnerable communities.
“Complementary to the testing carried out by medical staff within traditional health systems, the community-based testing conducted within our associations and off-site facilitates confidence and dialog with the most marginalized communities within a non-judgmental environment. Its effectiveness has been amply demonstrated by the associations in the Coalition PLUS network. Today, we are demanding its scale-up in all countries in order to cover the most remote territories and all of our populations. Only in this way, we can bring an end to epidemics,” explains Hakima Himmich, President of Coalition PLUS.
You can learn more about HIV and hepatitis, and find the nearest free testing site at https://prozdorovia.in.ua
About Coalition PLUS is an international union of community-based NGOs in the fight against AIDS and viral hepatitis, founded in 2008. Coalition PLUS operates in 52 countries and works with someone hundred civil society organizations. Through its principle of shared governance, the union involves 16 member organizations from the Global North and Global South in its decision-making. It is currently chaired by Professor Hakima Himmich.
CO “100% Life” is the largest patient-led organization in Ukraine, whose mission is to fight for Life. “100% Life” works with and for patients, representing the interests of people living with HIV in 25 regions of Ukraine.
