Leading HIV Advocacy Group offering Free HIV Test
To support iCON and SelfCare, LoveYourself also introduced the acXess program to ensure the continuum of care, especially among clients who obtain reactive HIVST results. Services covered include confirmatory HIV testing, viral load, and CD4 testing, and Hepatitis B, syphilis, and CBC diagnostic services.
Access to a healthcare professional is another need expressed by LoveYourself’s PLHIV clients. This has become challenging with COVID, primarily because they are concerned about their susceptibility to COVID-19 if they go out, due to their immunocompromised status. While there is still no evidence to prove that they have an indeed greater risk of acquiring COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO) still advises PLHIVs, especially “those with advanced diseases, those with low CD4 and high viral load, and those who are not taking ARV” to take extra precaution.
Reduced mobility and stringent community quarantine measures in the face of COVID-19 pose a major challenge for HIV health service providers and facilities, including LoveYourself. Roughly 6,000 PLHIV clients rely on the organization for uninterrupted access to life-saving medication and other HIV services.
Restricted mobility in Cebu City due to imposed lockdowns has posed a real challenge for its residents who continually need to avail of HIV-related services by LoveYourself White House.
The Flourish Circle, is a community-based initiative designed for people who are experiencing mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. The program aims to offer an avenue where individuals could feel safe as they go through the process of understanding and resolving their personal struggles. Unlike counseling, the Flourish Circle is peer-led. This means that help is collectively extended by a group of individuals. And with the aid of carefully designed modules per session, it is facilitated by trained Peer Support Specialists. The sessions are started by following a set of mutually agreed upon arrangements that values honesty, openness, and safe boundaries.
Eda Catabas and Jesse Castelo are some of the newest Trans Health Officers of LoveYourself Inc. As trans women themselves, they feel right at home in their new role. Together with their teammates, they are partnering up with Decent Image of South Signal Association (DIOSSA) for an event to celebrate Women’s Month.
Twenty-one new volunteers from Batch Espada were welcomed to the LoveYourself family on February 16, 2020, at LoveYourself White House, in Cebu City.
HIV cases in the country are increasing. What aggravates the situation is the lack of awareness, knowledge, and education of people across different ages, SOGIEs, socioeconomic statuses, religions, education, and professions. This already unfortunate situation has worsened by misinformation, stigmatization, and discrimination, hindering people from accessing free and available HIV services in the country. Thankfully, the Philippine Educational Theater Association’s (PETA) latest offering, Under My Skin, debunked most of these misconceptions, encouraging the people to take charge of their sexual health.
Ever had that burning sensation when you pee? Has there been odd smelling discharge staining your underwear recently? That could be a sign of gonorrhea, one of the most common sexually transmitted infections according to the World Health Organization in 2016. But worry not, because there are ways to prevent, detect, and cure gonorrhea infections, so we can all Go No! For Gonorrhea.
Complementing the operations and communications efforts of LoveYourself are its engagement activities for both its internal and external stakeholders. It is with the volunteers that LoveYourself maintains its place in the public’s consciousness as an affirming place to start loving themselves. Truly, the volunteers are the lifeblood of the organization.