‘Testing Millions’ World AIDS Day campaign surpasses its goal by testing more than 4.2M people for HIV

‘Testing Millions,’ a groundbreaking global effort led by AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) to test millions of people for HIV as part of a global testing campaign tied to the recent observance of World AIDS Day (December 1^st) has far surpassed its goal by testing more than 4.2 million people for HIV and identifying more than 110,106 HIV-positive individuals in 23 countries around the world. The ambitious six week-long campaign spearheaded by AHF, the largest global AIDS organization, also helped shatter myths and prejudices concerning the growing use of streamlined HIV testing and counseling models, as well as the mass mobilization of targeted groups and populations who would benefit from such free HIV testing and counseling. The 110,106 HIV positive individuals identified out of the more than 4.2 million people tested resulted in an overall 2.58% sero-positivity rate.

“We are proud to once again far exceed our testing goals; however, this is—and should be—only the beginning.”

“Testing over 4.2 million people in 23 countries over the course of just a few weeks is a truly remarkable accomplishment, and I want to thank all of our partners who helped make the ‘Testing Millions’ campaign such a rousing success,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “The results of this campaign demonstrate what can be achieved by using new HIV testing models as well as mass mobilization efforts. With so many millions of lives at stake, we need to better educate and encourage people to test. As public health leaders, we also need to be bold and open-minded—and be willing to embrace new testing and outreach strategies—in order to save as many lives as possible.”

"For the second year in a row, we saw partners rally toward greater testing access. We saw NGOs and some government programs change their old testing model to accommodate both the demand and the need for testing,” said Terri Ford, AHF Senior Director of Global Policy and Advocacy and coordinator of the ‘Testing Millions’ campaign. ”We saw both men and women lining up in queues wrapped around tents, subway entrances and market squares to get tested around the globe. People want to be tested. With more than 29 million people living in the world today without treatment, we are in a race to get them tested and save their lives. There is no treatment without testing so we must speed up and streamline testing services all over the world. Throughout AHF’s month-long ‘Testing Millions’ campaign, partners joined together to provide more than 4.2 million free rapid tests. We applaud each and every one of them for this incredible accomplishment, and urge a continued streamlining of the traditional VCT (Voluntary Counseling and Testing) method."

“The AIDS epidemic is growing rapidly in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where some of the highest increases in HIV rates in the world are being seen today,” said Igor Sobolev, Board Chairman, Estonian Network of People Living with HIV, in a statement from Estonia. “The availability of easy and free rapid HIV testing makes it possible not only to improve the quality of HIV prevention and psychosocial support, but also—and most importantly—quickly refer those individuals found to be HIV positive to lifesaving care and treatment when needed, which contributes to better overall control of the epidemic. That is why we fully supported AHF’s innovative testing model and successfully implemented it in Estonia with national partners."

"We applaud the leadership and support of our international partner, AIDS Healthcare Foundation for successfully spearheading the 2009 ‘Testing Millions’ World AIDS Day campaign,” said Enoch Magala, Program Coordinator, Mpolyabigere RC-Riced Center in Uganda, an organization that concentrates on HIV/AIDS services to previously underserved rural communities within a country whose partner organizations tested 157,077 individuals during this year’s campaign. “They subsequently linked us to their Uganda CARES Team in Kampala, whose support has been critical to the increased testing we have been able to achieve during both the 2008 and 2009 campaigns.”

“We must always do these testing activities with respect, ethics, professionalism and fellowship, which are the basic elements for success in applying the AHF testing model,” says Alejandro Jaime of Aspane Nueva Era AC, Mexico. “It was a big challenge for growth and evaluation, which we are personally thankful for.”

“The Kenya government’s achievement of testing more than 1.2 million people nationwide throughout the campaign, underscores their commitment to providing free, rapid HIV testing,” said Dr. Penninah Iutung, AHF East/West Africa Bureau Chief. “We look forward to expanding collaborative efforts that further support Kenya’s national HIV/AIDS response.”

In India, Mexico and Uganda, AHF and select partners utilized a groundbreaking testing tool, a one minute, finger stick blood serum INSITI test, made by Canada’s bioLytical Laboratories. This testing technology drastically reduces wait time for results while significantly increasing the volume of clients able to access testing services.