At-home test kits for HIV, STIs aim to remove barriers for people in Waterloo region, Guelph and area
'Accessible testing is a key step in preventing the spread of HIV and other STIs,' Dr. Matthew Tenenbaum says
People in Waterloo region, Guelph and Wellington County can now get a kit sent to their home to test for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.
Patrick O'Byrne a professor at the University of Ottawa who is also a nurse practitioner and who developed the GetAKit program. He says they make it easier for people who may feel stigmatized or who may face barriers to getting tested.
The kits offer free laboratory-based testing for STIs including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and hepatitis C, and HIV. They have been adopted by many health units in Ontario, including Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health and Region of Waterloo Public Health.
According to O'Byrne, while "the gold standard" is for people to see a doctor or nurse practitioner to get tested, it can a barrier for many.
"There's a barrier in a few different ways, one is geography. If you live where a clinic is, sure it's easier to do that, but if you are more remote or rural, kind of further you live from a testing centre, the further you live from health care, the less likely you are to actually use it, so there's a geographical barrier," O'Byrne told Craig Norris, host of CBC K-W's The Morning Edition.
"The second is that stigma component where the practices that transmit HIV — same sex practices between guys, injection drug use, sex work — these things are highly stigmatized and some people don't want to disclose that face-to-face to another individual," he added.
"I will not judge somebody, this is the work I do, but people do have real and very sustained experiences of stigma and discrimination in health care, so it is a barrier to them."
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GetAKit, developed as a study from the University of Ottawa and undertaken by local public health units across Ontario, aims to make sexual health testing simple, private and accessible for all, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health said in a news release announcing its launch of the program.
Explaining how GetAKit works, O'Byrne said people would go online to the program's website where they register and complete a risk assessment questionnaire. The questions are similar to the ones he would ask in-person when a patient comes in for a test.
He said the computer would then run through some algorithms to recommend testing based on current guidelines.
"If this is just requisitions, this will go directly to a lab … and they can go and do their urine and blood," O'Byrne said.
"We also have self tests, which is like a finger prick, and HIV self-test they can do at home. They can be mailed to them, and sometimes people need swabs, which we will send out to them."
Accessible testing is a key step in preventing the spread of HIV and other STIs.- Dr. Matthew Tenenbaum, associate medical officer of health, WDGPH
With the Canada Post strike continuing, O'Byrne said other couriers are being used and deliveries are being completed in one to two business days.
GetAKit is paid for by the Ontario government via the Ontario HIV Treatment Network or the Ministry of Health and Public Health Ontario, O'Byrne said.
"This was a publicly funded and built system for people in Ontario to use and get access to testing," he said.
A key step in preventing spread of HIV and other STIs
Like O'Byrne, Dr. Matthew Tenenbaum, associate medical officer of health for Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, said GetAKit is particularly valuable for individuals who may face barriers to accessing health-care services.
"Accessible testing is a key step in preventing the spread of HIV and other STIs," Tenenbaum said in a release.
"GetAKit provides individuals with a discreet and convenient way to prioritize their health, offering timely testing and connections to care if needed."
According to the health unit, the partnership with GetAKit is part of Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health's ongoing efforts to reduce the stigma surrounding HIV and STI testing, promote early detection and treatment, and ensure equitable access to sexual health services.
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With files from The Morning Edition