Officials with Kind Clinic announced today (Tuesday, Feb. 25) that the clinic is expanding its HIV/STI testing program in North Texas with a new mobile testing van. The van, made possible by support from the Nomi Health Foundation, will appear at local community events in the Dallas area, according to a press release announcing the expansion.
Kind Clinic, a program of Texas Health Action, offers sexual health services “offered in a culturally affirming, safe and supportive environment.
Christopher Hamilton, THA’s CEO, said, “Kind Clinic strives to overcome barriers to high quality sexual health services by offering many different ways to access those services, like our new mobile testing unit.
“Transportation to appointments is often a barrier. With our new mobile testing unit, we’re coming to meet people where they are,” Hamilton explained
The mobile testing initiative “builds on Kind Clinic’s commitment to meeting the community where they are regardless of income, insurance status or background,” the press release said, noting that Kind Clinic has provided sexual health services to the Dallas community from its location in the heart of the Cedar Springs neighborhood since 2022.
This marks the organization’s second mobile testing van, following the launch of mobile testing services in Austin in 2020.
Mobile services include testing for HIV, gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia and Hepatitis C. Patients who receive a reactive HIV or STI test from the mobile testing van can easily begin treatment at Kind Clinic or access preventive services like PrEP for HIV prevention.
The Kind Clinic team is experienced in serving the LGBTQIA+ community, along with patient advocates and case managers who support HIV-positive individuals by removing barriers to care such as lack of insurance coverage, the press release stressed.
Boe Hartman, chief technology officer of Nomi Health and a Nomi Health Foundation board member, said, “Nomi Health and the Nomi Health Foundation are committed to improving the health of everyone in our communities. We are so excited to be able to provide Kind Clinic with a mobile testing van, helping them expand their important work to more people in Texas.
“Kind Clinic has an amazing reputation for providing necessary health services to thousands each year. We are proud to support their mission.”
According to the Texas Department of State Health Services’ most recent People Living with HIV Report published in 2022, the Dallas HIV Service Delivery Area holds the second-highest number of HIV cases out of Texas’s 28 HSDAs.
“Dallas has one of the highest rates of new HIV diagnoses in Texas, and yet, barriers to care persist,” Steven Tamayo, director of community health for Kind Clinic, said. “Expanding our mobile testing efforts here ensures that more people — especially those in marginalized communities — have access to free, affirming testing services and the care they deserve.”
For more information about Kind Clinic or to make an appointment, visit KindClinic.org.
— Tammye Nash