PETERSBURG, Va. — Tuesday is National HIV Testing Day, and health experts are encouraging you to get tested for the disease to know your status and get linked to care and treatment.
That process is now a little bit easier in Petersburg, as pharmacy staff at the Walmart on South Crater Road just opened the area's first Specialty Pharmacy of the Community (SPOC).
That means staff at the Walmart location have gone through additional training to be able to help patients with diagnosing and treating HIV, as well as several other illnesses.
Petersburg Vice Mayor Darrin Hill said these services are needed in his city of 33,000 people.
"I’m excited that this is the first, being the first in the City of Petersburg, especially being that our HIV rate is kind of high compared to other parts of the state," Hill noted.
Walmart said it selected this store — as well as four others in Central Virginia — to become specialty pharmacies based on CDC data that shows the areas have a higher number of HIV cases but fewer options for care.
Minority Health Consortium Incorporated has partnered with Walmart to offer free rapid HIV tests, allowing patients to will receive test results within 20 minutes.
If you receive a positive test, the organization will work with you to get medication and treatment within a week of your diagnosis.
"People shouldn’t be ashamed of getting tested because I think a lot of people remember 30 years ago when HIV was seen as a terminal illness," said Juan Pierce, executive director of the Minority Health Consortium Incorporated. "And with the technology and the medication that we have out now, we know that a person taking this medication within the first six to eight months, they can get to an undetected viral load level."
Experts noted it’s important to get tested for HIV every three to four months or three to four partners — whichever comes first. They add testing is key, specifically in the early stages of the disease where you may not have symptoms because unfortunately by the time symptoms appear, HIV can be more difficult to treat.
"It’s important for all of our customers and patients here at Walmart to be accepted for who they are, regardless of their life circumstances, so we offer very discreet, private testing," said Stacy Shrewsbury, Walmart Pharmacy clinical services manager. "We are signing up here on a number-based system, offering fully private testing. No one will know your results when you leave except your tester and you."
Testing at the Petersburg Walmart will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, and free HIV tests are also being offered at the Walmart on Shelia Lane in Richmond and the location on Nine Mile road in Henrico Tuesday.
Wednesday, Walmart will offer testing at the Chattanooga Plaza location in Midlothian. On Friday, you can get tested at the Ashland Walmart.
