GYT: Get Yourself Tested

Planned Parenthood, MTV, Kaiser Family Foundation Use Multimedia Approach to Promote STD Testing for Young People To Reduce Alarming STD Infection Rates

ALBANY, NY (04/02/2009)(readMedia)-- Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood (UHPP) today announces its nationwide campaign with MTV and the Kaiser Family Foundation to officially unveil "GYT09 (Get Yourself Tested), a campaign designed to increase knowledge, testing and treatment of STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) among those under the age of 25.GYT09 has initiated a mix of promotions on-air, online and in the real world that will unfold throughout the month of April in recognition of National STD Awareness Month. The central hub of the campaign, GYT09.org, will provide comprehensive information about STDs and will direct users to the nearest testing location simply by entering a zip code. A mobile companion to GYT09.org, the GYT short code (49809), provides details about local testing locations to mobile phones by texting a zip code.

An all-star collective of pop culture personalities are carrying the GYT message far and wide, appearing in a series of attention-getting on-air and online promotions on MTV and other MTV Network properties this month; blasting out GYT on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms; wearing GYT on their chest and sleeves; and of course, going to get tested for STDs.

From OMG to LOL, acronyms saturate young people's everyday vernacular, acting as common methods of communication. Playing off mobile and Web slang, GYT is an easy way for young people to talk about sexual health and getting tested for STDs. GYT will help young people internalize the risk of STDs and eliminate taboos and stigmas surrounding STDs and STD testing.

As part of GYT, Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood will be providing comfortable, confidential testing for STDs, including rapid- results oral- swab HIV testing, and urine- based Chlamydia and Gonorrhea test for men.

"Most people would be shocked to hear that, by age 25, one in two sexually active young people will have an STD. This is not just a statistic, but the reality of what Planned Parenthood health centers see every day," said Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards. "The GYT campaign is an excellent opportunity for people to learn what Planned Parenthood knows — that affordable testing and treatment and education are the tools teens and young people need to stay healthy and safe."

Based on the most recent data from the New York State Department of Health, we know that Albany County has the highest rate of Chlamydia in the seventeen counties of Northeastern New York at 327.6 cases per 1,000 of the population. Rates of STIs among area youth are even more alarming. Chlamydia infections were especially high among young females under the age of 20. In UHPP's four- county service area in 2004, there were 440 cases of Chlamydia diagnosed among young women ages 10-19, including: 297 cases in Albany County, 103 cases in Rensselaer County, and 20 each in Columbia and Green Counties. Young people under the age of 20 comprised 29% (170 of 590) of the total number of gonorrhea cases in UHPP's 2004 service area. In 2004-2005, 1,152 individuals were newly diagnosed with AIDS in the upstate New York (outside of New York City); 38 of these were in Albany County, seven in Rensselaer, four in Columbia County and nine in Greene County. In the same year, 594 new cases of HIV infection were diagnosed in upstate New York, with 24 cases occurring in Albany, 10 new cases diagnosed in Rensselaer County and one new case in Greene County.

At Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood (518-434-5678) area health centers, STD testing and treatment services are available at Hudson Health Center (518-828-4675): Monday & Tuesday closed, Wednesday 9:00am- 5:00pm, Thursday 9:00am- 5:00pm (Teen Clinic 2:30pm- 6:00pm), Friday Closed; Troy Health Center(518-274-5640): Monday 10:00am- 6:30pm,Tuesday 8:30am- 5:00pm (Walk-in Clinic 8:30am- 5:00pm), Wednesday 10:00am-6:30pm, Thursday 8:30am-5:00pm, Friday 8:30am- 5:00pm (Walk-in Clinic 8:30am-11:30am); Albany Health Center(518-434-5678): Monday 8:30am- 8:00pm, Tuesday 8:30am- 8:00pm (Walk-in pregnancy test 8:30am-11:30am), Wednesday 8:30am- 8:00pm (Walk-in Clinic 8:30am- 11:00am), Thursday 8:30am- 6:30pm (Teen Clinic 2:30pm-6:00pm), Friday 8:00am- 5:00pm, Saturday 9:00am- 1:00pm (Walk-in pregnancy test 9:00am-12:00pm).

-30-