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Tackling HIV/AIDS In Wal-Mart

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By TONY MARRERO, Hernando Today

Published: December 1, 2007

SPRING HILL - Check your shopping list.

Bread.

Milk.

Toilet paper.

Free HIV test?

Go ahead and add that last one. The Hernando County Health Department is teaming up with the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Commercial Way to offer free HIV screenings at a health fair today from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The health department has already joined forces to offer services during health fairs at the county's other Wal-Mart stores, said Joan Felix-Sepulveda, a licensed practical nurse at the health department.

The event today is meant to commemorate World AIDS Day, a global initiative to raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and to encourage people to get tested.

It also aims to give people a convenient way to do something they might be avoiding, Felix-Sepulveda said.

"Because HIV has that stigma, people are afraid," she said. "We want to give people the opportunity to be tested without the pressures of that stigma."

Health officials will use the painless, needle-free Orasure test that requires only a gentle cotton swab to the inner cheek.

Results are ready in about two weeks. An added bonus: Health department officials offer flexibility in where they meet patients to provide the results.

For those worried about getting the test in full view of crowded checkout lines, fear not. There will be private areas set up for confidentiality's sake, Felix-Sepulveda said.

For those who need a little extra encouragement, goodie bags will be handed out with every free test.

Bringing HIV/AIDS into the light of a busy shopping area, however, will help remove the stigma, she said.

"The more we see people get tested, we're going to know there's no finger-pointing here," she said. "It's about our health. It's about setting an example. It's about being aware and keeping our community in the know."

Nearly 40 million people worldwide have HIV/AIDS.

In the first six months of 2006, the most recent statistics available from the health department, there were 70 cases of HIV in Hernando County and 210 AIDS cases. Combined, they resulted in 111 deaths.

But a diagnosis is no longer the death sentence it was two decades ago, Felix-Sepulveda said.

With a host of treatments that have evolved since then, "This disease is manageable if it's caught at the right time," she said.

There will be a few other vendors at Saturday's health fair, including Curves Fitness Center, said Peggy Buenning, manager of the vision center at the Wal-Mart. Free vision screenings also will be available.

Partnering with the health department and offering HIV screenings are a way for Wal-Mart to stay in touch with the needs of its neighbors, said store manager Kathy Scanland.

"We think it's the right thing to do for the community," Scanland said.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Health fair featuring free HIV/AIDS screenings

WHEN: Today from 9 to 2 p.m.

WHERE: Wal-Mart Supercenter, 1485 Commercial Way, Spring Hill

COST: Free

CONTACT: Hernando County Health Department, 540-6800, ext 82173

Reporter Tony Marrero can be reached at 352-544-5286 or lmarrero@hernandotoday.com.

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