To inform citizens about the importance of knowing one’s HIV status, the Michigan Department of Community Health, or MDCH, recognized Sunday’s National HIV Testing Day.
James McCurtis, MDCH public information officer, said across Michigan, there are more than 18,000 people diagnosed with HIV. About 4,000 of that number are unaware they have the virus and could spread the disease without understanding the complications.
“Having a national day of testing calls awareness of something that’s very critical in our country,” McCurtis said. “A lot of people are infected with HIV and many of them don’t even know it.”
Todd Heywood, a Lansing community activist for HIV/AIDS prevention, said he had no idea he contracted the disease until he was tested by doctors looking for the cause of his weakened immune system.
He was told of his results on July 17, 2007.
“I didn’t anticipate that I would test positive — I thought I was safe, (but) it turns out that I wasn’t,” Heywood said. “The person who infected me knew that he was HIV-positive, but because of the stigma and being out with the disease, he didn’t tell me.”
Heywood said he has faced numerous obstacles while trying to make sense of the disease and live a better life.
“I’ve even been told by other gay men that I should be shot for trying to date other men,” he said. “Young people say, ‘I’m not a risk,’ or, ‘It won’t happen to me.’”
The collective mindset of being impervious needs to change to make a real impact in the fight against HIV, Heywood said. Placing aside a day for testing only scratches the surface of the real work necessary to fight the disease, he said.
“I don’t think we’re doing nearly enough,” Heywood said. “(We’re) focusing prevention money on HIV-positive (people). That’s like closing the barn door when the cows are out and saying, ‘Whew, I saved the cows.’”
Although it is important to assist those who are affected by HIV, prevention comes with targeting those at risk and those afraid to know their status, Heywood said.
Outside of metropolitan Detroit, Ingham County has more new cases of HIV than any other county in the state, Heywood said. Young people are some of the most at risk, he said.
“The sooner you get tested and the sooner you catch the infection, the less likely you will get horribly sick and die,” Heywood said. “This is about saving people’s lives.”
Olin Health Center offers students, faculty and staff free and anonymous testing. Andrew Poole, an HIV counselor at Olin, said even if a person is unsure of his or her health, getting tested is a good choice.
“It is important to know your status,” Poole said. “It’s kind of like using your common sense.”
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