An announcement that rapid test HIV kits will not now be distributed to sex on site venues has been hailed as a positive but insufficient move by the NZ AIDS Foundation. Intended continued distribution through adult shops remains vehemently opposed by the Foundation which says condoms and lube are the only sure way of preventing HIV spread amongst gay and bi men. In a statement this evening kit importers Head Start Testing said a decision not to sell to sex on site venues was actually made before the kits were imported. However, at least two venues, Lateshift in Auckland and Menfriends in Christchurch, received emails from wholesaler Turkana Trading promoting the product and Lateshift was able to purchase two sample kits late last week from that wholesaler. Mike Colwill of Head Start says Turkana has agreed "to not sell the product to sex on site locations," saying this reflects Head Start's wishes that the tests not be available at "any designated place of sex, i.e. brothels or places specifically for making sexual encounters, i.e. saunas and cruise clubs... Turkana is to sell to retail lifestyle shops only." Lateshift says it was today contacted by Turkana asking for the two sample kits it had purchased to be returned and for the locally produced supplementary information sheets intended to be handed over with the kits to be returned as they needed to be modified. "Sex locations were never an appropriate location for the sale of this product," says Colwill. "Selling the product in a sex location encourages the testing by individuals 'for the purpose of a sexual encounter' where as the product is intended to be used by individuals concerned about their status. Selling it in a retail outlet that individuals visit to buy such items as condoms, etc. is a logical choice and is an easy and accessible location to purchase the kit from. Selling it in a location where sex takes place has no logical connection to the intended usage and as such is not a suitable location. Our focus is on retail outlets such as pharmacies and adult lifestyle stores." Colwill admits there is no way to "legally or logically" stop any other retailer or venue from purchasing the kits over the counter from an 'approved' retailer and on-selling them. NZAF CONCERNS Whilst welcoming the restriction the NZAF says it still opposes any retailing of the kits through adult stores. "There is a serious risk that an at home-HIV test could be erroneously used to 'prove' an individual's serostatus without regard to the window period, accuracy of the test or way it's used, the effects of an unexpected positive or need for professional pre- and post-test counseling," says Eamonn Smythe, the Foundation's Director, Positive Health Services. Head Start has acknowledged the NZAF's concerns, but differentiates between availability of the rapid test kits for personal use, how people use them and how the test results might be used. "We can not stop such misuse of the product, no more than a traditional testing organisation can stop a tested individual showing their new sex partner a negative result even though they had a high risk exposure only days ago," says Colwill. "The issue is misuse of the test result, the individual's behaviour, not the test method. For this reason we encourage articles such as this one to educate the public about the limitations of HIV testing, especially in the first three months after potential exposure. However, to focus only on the negatives of this method is not serving the public fairly, the public need also to realise that used responsibly and as intended, this testing method will increase the number of individuals testing and will increase HIV detection in the community." Colwill says Head Start Testing, "like its suppliers," aims to "enhance and save lives through early medical testing... self testing addresses the very real problem of 'post risk' individuals not testing through current methods when perhaps they would have, given a more private and convenient alternative. An ongoing concern is "how many people have been infected by a person, who had risk concerns but did not test in time, for reasons of privacy or convenience?" The obvious answer to this is 'too many.'" Although it has run a number of campaigns to encourage at risk New Zealanders, primarily gay and bi men, to test for HIV as a way of identifying 'hidden' infections and limiting transmission to others, the NZAF's Smythe takes issue with Colwill's approach, apparently worried that some will see a negative self-administered rapid test result as a green light for unprotected sex. "HIV testing will not protect gay and bisexual men against HIV," he says, "only using condoms and lube for anal sex every time will."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 10th November 2009 - 10:58pm