Feb. 6, 2008 — The Virgin Islands has been number one per capita for HIV cases in the United States the last four years, and that status must change, says Bruce Smail, chief executive officer of V. I. Community AIDS Resource and Education (VICARE).
"As a community we should be outraged," Smail said. "There isn't any way VICARE can solve the problem alone."
It is a collective responsibility of many government agencies to fight the problem, he said, speaking at a VICARE testing program before National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Thursday. Testing and education are key to alleviating the problem, he added.
VICARE partnered with the University of the Virgin Islands' St. Croix campus in giving free HIV tests at the UVI Health Services Center in the Great House. All through the day Wednesday a steady flow of people got tested. Students and young couples came in for testing, as did single males and females from the general public.
In the two days of testing at UVI, organizers hope to get at least 150 people tested, Smail said.
"So far I'm happy with the turnout," he said.
Testing will continue from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday.
The test is painless, with no blood or needles, and the results are available in 20 minutes. Three VICARE staff members were giving the tests, with the whole office staff on hand to answer questions and promote awareness. The people getting tested each got a red or black T-shirt with the message "End the Silence — Let's Talk About HIV" emblazoned on the back.
"We need to talk about HIV and get the message out at all levels," Smail said. He will give his personal story of living with HIV and lead a discussion on HIV, safer sex, trusting intimate partners and personal responsibility at 7 p.m. Thursday at the UVI St. Croix Campus Cafetorium. A question-and-answer session will follow.
"I strongly encourage people to come out for the talk," Smail said. "The community needs to understand how critical it is to get tested, know their status and practice safe sex.
He emphasized several areas:
— Government agencies need to take an active leadership role along with businesses;
— Financial support is needed;
— This problem is territory-wide — it's more than a health issue alone; and
— There needs to be collaboration between agencies like the Health Department and the Department of Education.
Schools also need to help get the message out to students, Smail said. There is a high rate of sexually transmitted diseases(STDs) with students. HIV rates may be high, too, but no one knows for sure unless they get tested.
"Generally in the Virgin Islands sex is not talked about," Smail said. "If we could get the message into all the schools — public and private — we could see the numbers change. But we're not there yet."
Iris Hall from VICARE gave out information Wednesday on the Respect Project. It is a two- part intervention session identifying risky behavior and teaching how to curb those behaviors.
VICARE will hold a benefit Valentine's Day called Taste for Life — Hearts for Life. Participating restaurants will donate a portion of their proceeds — between 10 and 25 percent — to VICARE. Some of the participating restaurants are Bongos, Elizabeth's at H20, Rumrunners, Savant, Coconuts on the Beach and more.
VICARE is the largest HIV/AIDS non-profit agency in the Virgin Islands. Federal grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provide major support.
For more information on HIV/AIDS and VICARE, call 692-9111.
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