Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood Provides Free HIV Testing

ALBANY, NY (06/29/2007)(readMedia)-- A total of 33 individuals took advantage of free HIV testing and counseling at Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood (UHPP) centers on June 27, National HIV Free Testing Day. The UHPP health center in Albany saw 19 men and women, while the UHPP centers in Hudson and Troy saw 7 people each. While UHPP staff in Hudson provided direct services for this special day, services in Albany and Troy were provided with the cooperation of testers from the New York State Health Department. At each center, testing was only available during three specific hours of the day. Each person who came in for testing received a gift certificate for Price Chopper, provided through Project W.A.V.E.

Additionally, UHPP staff led a coalition of agencies who provided coordinated testing throughout the day at four different sites in Columbia County. This is the third year the event has been held in that county, and the numbers of people tested have doubled each year. A total of 54 individuals were tested this year, including those who tested at the UHPP center in Hudson.

“We were particularly pleased with the number of people who came in for testing this year,” stated UHPP President/CEO Patricia A.McGeown. “All of these individuals felt personally at risk for HIV and each of them now has important information about their own HIV status, as well as how to protect themselves against AIDS and sexually transmitted infections in the future.”

McGeown noted that newspaper and radio coverage of the event were key factors in the increased number of patients who came for testing this year.

Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood is a community-based non-profit organization providing advocacy, education and medical services for reproductive health care in the capital region since 1934. Our services are delivered with special concern for the underserved.