Johannesburg – Women need to take the lead when it comes to their sexual health as many of them, both young and old, often don’t know the HIV status of their partner/s.
According to the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation, HIV infections have increased, especially among young women between 15 and 24 years.
Statistics recorded in 2019 show that nearly 4 500 South Africans are infected every week, one-third being adolescent females. But with various reproductive health options available, you have the power to shield yourself from the virus.
One such wonder drug is PrEP or pre-exposure prophylaxis.
It doesn’t protect you from sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy but will protect you from the deadly virus.
Saiqa Mullick, the director of implementation science at Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute, said the drug is available at 2 087 public healthcare facilities around the country.
Mullick stressed that it is not targeted at “high risk” individuals, but rather to all HIV-negative women, men, young girls, and members of the LGBTQ community.
The wonder drug is cited as a great HIV prevention method for people who may forget to use a condom, if or when the condom should break, people whose partners are HIV-positive, whose partner’s HIV status they don’t know, who have sex when using alcohol or drugs and/or those people who may share needle injections.
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