Anonymous and Free HIV Testing Service Launched in Kocaeli

At the Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre (GDTM) in Kocaeli, members of the public can be tested for HIV free of charge and without sharing their identity details. Experts point out that HIV infection can progress without symptoms for a long time, and stress that testing after a risky contact is important for early diagnosis.

The Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre (GDTM), which operates at the Umuttepe Campus of Kocaeli University Hospital, aims to make HIV testing and counselling services easier to access. At the centre people can be tested for HIV anonymously without sharing their identity details and, where necessary, can be referred to health services.

Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centres are set up to provide counselling to people at risk of HIV or who suspect HIV infection, as well as to provide anonymous and free testing.

HIV and AIDS are not the same
Prof. Dr. Sıla Akhan, Specialist in Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology at Kocaeli University Research Hospital, underlined that HIV and AIDS are not the same thing.

Noting that HIV is a virus that targets the immune system, Akhan said HIV can be transmitted through unprotected sexual contact, through blood, and – where the necessary precautions are not taken – from mother to baby during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding.

Stating that HIV is not transmitted through everyday contact such as shaking hands, hugging, sharing the same space, using the same toilet or eating from the same plate, Akhan said AIDS is the advanced stage of untreated HIV infection.

Akhan drew attention to the fact that, thanks to early diagnosis and regular treatment, people living with HIV today can continue their lives without progressing to the AIDS stage.

HIV infection may show no symptoms for a long time
Noting that HIV infection can progress without symptoms in some people for a long time, Prof. Dr. Akhan drew attention to the importance of people who have had a risky contact going to a health facility without waiting for symptoms to appear.

Akhan said: “Early diagnosis is an important step both for a person’s own health and for public health.”

Experts recommend that people who believe they have had a contact carrying a risk of HIV should make use of testing and counselling services at the appropriate time.

Anonymous HIV testing in Kocaeli
Prof. Dr. Akhan noted that HIV tests can be carried out at university hospitals, training and research hospitals and various health institutions, and said Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centres are an important option in that they provide an anonymous service.

People who go to the Kocaeli Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre can be tested for HIV without sharing their identity details and can receive counselling on the testing process. Where necessary, they are referred to health institutions providing diagnosis and treatment.

“HIV testing should be seen as a routine health practice”
Çiğdem Şimşek, Chair of the Board of the Pozitif-iz Association, said HIV testing should be regarded as an ordinary health service.

Şimşek said the anonymous testing service allows people to be tested without sharing their identity details, and that confidentiality is one of the fundamental elements of the service.

Drawing attention to the fact that advances in HIV treatment allow people living with HIV to lead long and healthy lives, Şimşek said treatment protects a person’s health by suppressing HIV and also helps prevent sexual transmission.

The Pozitif-iz Association works to increase access to accurate information about HIV, to support testing and early diagnosis, and to provide peer counselling and support services for people living with HIV. Alongside counselling for people living with HIV and their relatives, the association also carries out work to raise awareness of HIV and reduce discrimination.

Kocaeli Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre
Address: Kocaeli University Hospital, Umuttepe Campus, İzmit/Kocaeli

Opening days: every weekday

Opening hours: 09.00-12.00 and 13.30-16.00

Telephone: 0262 303 66 14

Appointments: appointments can be made on 0262 303 66 14, or you can go directly to the Anonymous Testing Centre Outpatient Clinic at Kocaeli University Hospital.

Pozitif-iz Association: carries out awareness, peer counselling, advocacy and support work in the field of HIV.