“How to Get Free and Easy HIV Screening at Your Nearest Health Center”

Liputan6.com, Jakarta – Lately, HIV cases have become one of the health issues that are of concern to the government. Not long ago, the Indonesian Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) revealed that the cumulative number of HIV-positive children reached more than 14,000 cases.

Transmission from the mother is said to be the main cause of high child HIV cases. Therefore, it is important to carry out HIV screening as a preventive measure.

Spokesman (spokesperson) of the Indonesian Ministry of Health, dr. Mohammad Syahril, revealed that the government has provided HIV testing services in almost all health facilities (faskes).

“Both in puskesmas and hospitals, almost all of them already have services to screen for HIV and also for other sexually transmitted diseases, including syphilis,” said Syahril in a virtual press conference entitled ‘Protecting Children from Sexually Transmitted Diseases’ on Monday, ( 8/5/2023).

No need to worry, HIV screening can be accessed free of charge and easily at the nearest Community Health Center (Puskesmas). What are the steps?

1. Register at the Health Center Counter

HIV screening can be started by looking for the nearest health center from home. For BPJS Health patients, visit a health center registered with BPJS.

After that, go to the registration counter, then register for an HIV rapid test.

According to a general practitioner, dr. Dyah Novita Anggraini, examinations at the puskesmas were also carried out through the program Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT).

“VCT is a puskesmas program for prevention and treatment management for HIV-positive patients. In this program, there is counseling, blood tests, and post-blood test counseling,” said Dyah Clickdokter.