TULSA, Okla. — The organization "Health Outreach Prevention Education," or HOPE, held its monthly volunteer day, this time coinciding with World AIDS Day. On Friday, HOPE hosted volunteers to assemble safety kits for the Green Country community.
"Today, our events are focused on testing so that more Oklahomans know their status for HIV," Taryn Norman, executive director of HOPE, said. "Because knowledge is power, and too few know your status."
Part of knowing that status, Norman said, is HIV self-tests.
They can be found at one of HOPE's events around Green Country, in its public health vending machine, or online at
https://hopetesting.org/at-home-hiv-testing/
Friday, Volunteers at HOPE's headquarters in Tulsa packed safer sex and harm reduction kits.
Norman said injections are where a lot of new HIV infections come from.
"The ultimate goal is for us to engage with folks, provide testing, so they know their status, and then they can make safer plans," Norman said. "And for some individuals who are currently using injection drugs, that might mean down the road, that they are able to stay safe, stay alive, to reach a point where they decide they don't want to use drugs anymore."
And the accessibility of these kits and testing supplies is what Friday's volunteer event is about.
Campbell Ernst, a disease intervention specialist with the state health department, is one of several people who came out Friday morning to help.
"So we're here today to help with harm reduction, as far as with kits, and preparing those for potential clients coming in as far as reducing risks that are related to injection drug use and other related risks," Ernst said.
Oklahoma, according to Norman, is one of seven states identified by the CDC as having a rural burden of HIV, which is why, she said, these kits and community outreach are so important, especially among our state's youth.
"53% of new STI and HIV infections are among 15- to 24-year-olds," Norman said. "And so, it's really important for us to reach that youth population too."
Lowering the barriers for resources, Norman said, is critical to reaching that population.
"We recognize a lot of folks want that discretion and confidentiality," Norman said.
"We want to work our best as far as eliminating, if not then reducing, those barriers to make it easier for people to access those supplies or healthcare services," Ernst said.
And to help Oklahomans, HOPE relies heavily on volunteer events like this one.
"Volunteers with a vending machine have just been essential because you cannot purchase these kits pre-made," Norman said. "So, we require, you know, it takes a lot to fill those kits to organize all those supplies, so we could not operate the vending machine without volunteer partners."
For more details and information on HOPE, visit 2 News Oklahoma's recent article on the organization's work here: https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/tulsa-organizations-providing-free-resources-on-world-aids-day
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