Monday was just an average day at UCLA, with the exception of a
student walking around in a giant condom costume, lubricants and
condoms being passed out along Bruin Walk and a large mobile
station parked in the center of Bruin Plaza testing students for
sexually transmitted diseases.
These sights marked the first day of “Get Tested”
week.
In order to fulfill a campaign promise, General Representative
Jenny Wood of the Undergraduate Students Association Council has
joined efforts with the AIDS Institute, Student Welfare Commission,
UCLA Campus Events and the UCLA Dance Marathon to sponsor a sexual
health awareness week.
“The event seeks to heighten sexual health awareness among
the UCLA student body and to decrease the stigma associated with
getting tested for STDs, while providing the no-cost opportunity
for students to do so,” Wood said.
Every day this week the mobile testing units will be in Bruin
Plaza to provide confidential testing from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. They
will provide testing for syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea and
HIV.
The entire process takes 20 minutes and the results are
available by phone in about three days.
On its first day, the unit successfully completed testing for 95
students. Today and Wednesday will feature two mobile clinic
testing units available to facilitate the process and ease student
traffic.
Carlos Saucedo, second-year political science student,
volunteered his time on Monday to help sign students up for
testing.
“I wanted to be a part of this because I know its
important for our community. We’re in college, and the
reality is that people are having unprotected sex often.
“We want to let people know that it’s important to
use condoms and that they are a safe practice,” Saucedo
said.
Besides getting tested and creating a sense of awareness at the
UCLA campus, the combined organizations sponsoring the event made
sure to include one thing young college students on a budget often
can’t resist ““ freebies.
Giveaways include food, condoms, lubricants, health brochures,
T-shirts, flu shots and red bracelets with the words “I
know,” resembling the popular yellow Lance Armstrong
bracelets.
Along with the free testing, there will be a number of other
events taking place throughout the week.
If waiting three days for the results is too much, students have
the option to get tested for HIV on Friday with the planned
“Rapid HIV testing,” which returns results within 20
minutes.
In an attempt to lighten the mood, Jess Tsuei, a third-year
economics student, voluntarily wore an oversized condom costume to
approach people about getting tested.
“There is a stigma about getting tested, and so I think by
adding humor it maybe makes a very serious matter less scary to
address,” Tsuei said.