AIDS organizations call reporting useful for reaching at-risk people
John Carlo
More than half the people who responded to a recent online poll at DallasVoice.com said they would not reveal sexual partners to a county health official if they were found to have HIV or another STD.
When someone tests positive for HIV or a sexually transmitted disease in Texas, that case is reported to the county health department for the purpose of tracking. County health employes will ask for information about sexual contacts to encourage them to be tested and, if positive, help get them into treatment.
But an informal survey found none who would reveal names or other information about their sexual contacts. They offered a variety of reasons to refuse offering names — everything from not necessarily knowing the names of the other people involved to not wanting to deal with the drama.
One said it was simply not the county’s business but would contact partners himself. Another who had dealt with the county called its staff intrusive, over-the-top and annoying. Another said he’d let the county know only the names close to him, not odd information about people he didn’t really know.
The program isn’t new, but has been in the news because of employes falsifying records. But local AIDS agency officials call the it an important part of controlling sexually transmitted diseases.
Abounding Prosperity CEO Kirk Myers said, “It’s a valuable tool if people are willing to give information. If people are not willing, that needs to be respected, too.”
Myers said sometimes turning in names of others who may have been exposed and letting the county inform them can sometimes be easier than telling the person yourself. He gave the example of a partner who thinks he’s in a monogamous relationship.
He said many people think it’s a witch-hunt, but that’s not the case. The information is coded. The county keeps no lists of who’s had sex with whom. When the program is working properly, county health officials are only interested getting people tested and into treatment.
“They get immune to the stories and are not judging you,” he said.
Myers said people sometimes ignore syphilis because it’s curable. That’s exactly the reason people need to get tested — so they can get rid of it.
According to Bret Camp, Texas regional director of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, county officials are persistent. If someone doesn’t respond to phone calls, they’ll show up at the door.
In the gay community, the person who’s been exposed may not have the person’s name, only a screen name from Grindr or other hookup site.
The county will contact a connection on the app, if that’s the only way to find that person.
Camp said they may ask if you went to someone’s house, what the address was. They’ll make personal visits. If someone came over, they’ll ask what kind of car he was driving.
Myers said the point of the questions is not to pry, but to jog your memory.
AIDS Arms Executive Director John Carlo called it an important program, but understood the misgivings.
“It’s unpleasant but necessary,” he said. “It does work when done correctly.”
He said healthcare workers get lots of training before going out into the field contacting those who have been exposed.
“We’re not going to get ahead of the game,” Carlo said, unless partners who have been exposed are contacted and those who are positive are treated. He said the program isn’t new and when the program is working as it should, it’s the most effective tool we have to combat STDs and HIV.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition June 20, 2014.