New sexual health and HIV vending machines in five venues in Brighton & Hove are being formally launched on Friday 8 October.
The vending machines offer free sexual health self-sampling kits and HIV self-tests.
The sexual health kits contain swabs and blood sampling equipment which will be tested for chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and HIV when returned through the post to the Sexual Health Clinic.
The HIV self-tests are 99.7% accurate. By using a saliva mouth swab they give a result in just 15 minutes. The kits are for people WITHOUT SYMPTOMS who want to check their sexual health or HIV status.
The venues for the new vending machines are:
The initiative is being run jointly by the Martin Fisher Foundation and University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust.
Council leader Phélim Mac Cafferty has welcomed the new service. He said:
“Brighton & Hove is a HIV Fast Track City – which means we’re working together to end all new cases of HIV by 2030.
“For this to happen everyone at risk of HIV needs to take an HIV test and be aware of their HIV status. Having free testing kits more readily available will help us achieve this goal.
“We have some of the best HIV support, treatment, and prevention services and community organisations in the country. And I’m delighted that the Jubilee Library is one of the venues for this vital new service.”
The chair of the city's Health and Wellbeing Board, Councillor Sue Shanks, is attending the formal launch of the new machines by the Martin Fisher Foundation at an event at the Jubilee Library on Friday 8 October from 5.30pm to 7pm.
See here for further information about the sexual health and HIV vending machines initiative.