“You need to know your status.” Those simple, yet true words of advice come from HIV advocacy pioneer Debra Fraser-Howze and in a recent interview with BlackDoctor.org, she breaks down the importance of getting tested and how it can be done in the privacy of your own home.
Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic was first introduced, there have been major advancements with testing and preventative measures including OraQuick and PrEP.
“PrEP is an antiviral medication. You take a pill as a preventative action. OraQuick is a test that gives you the ability to test yourself and get an accurate result at home,” said Fraser-Howze, who recently retired from her role as Senior Vice President, Government and External Affairs at OraSure where she was instrumental in the launch of the OraQuick In-Home Test.
“I understand that if our community is going to get out of this epidemic, we are going to have to test our way out,” Fraser-Howze added.
Not only is the OraQuick In-Home HIV Test based on the same test that healthcare professionals have used since 2004, it’s also the first rapid in-home test approved by the FDA. “When a person gets a virus, their body produces antibodies to respond to the virus and once you can detect the antibodies that are specific to HIV in your body, you can know that you are HIV positive,” explained Fraser-Howze. “It’s a simple swab of the mouth; there are no needles and your antibodies will show up in 20 minutes.”
Testing at home, according to Fraser-Howze, is not only convenient but also empowering. She shared, “You control your destiny with the test. You take the test on your time, in your own space and you get your own result. I think that’s a critical component of how we need to look at this today.”
Fraser-Howze strongly suggests that both Black women and men need to have a conversation about this virus that is affecting our community. She advised that, “Black women need to talk to each other about taking a test. If you’ve been sexually active ever, you need to be tested. Ten percent of new infections are among women over the age of 50. Black women are 16 times more likely to be HIV positive than white women, so we have to have that conversation.”
HIV is disturbingly high among Black gay and bisexual men, specifically in the South. “We have a state of emergency among Black gay and bisexual men in the South. We must address this because we cannot afford to lose another brother or another sister to an epidemic that we can test our way out and treat our way out,” Fraser-Howze explained.
For Fraser-Howze, it’s imperative that African Americans, in particular, find a way to move beyond the stigma and misinformation. The HIV expert believes we need to have “a family conversation” about HIV and AIDS. She went on to say, “We need to begin that in the schools, in the churches, in the community, wherever we gather to talk seriously about this epidemic. Thirty-six years is a long time for a community to be disproportionally impacted by a vicious virus that still has no cure.”
However, there is hope and it comes in the form of testing and knowing your status. Fraser-Howze proclaimed, “It’s time for us to come out of this, to test our way out of this and be very serious about it.”
The maker of the OraQuick In-Home HIV Test, the first FDA-approved in-home HIV test, is working with BlackDoctor.org, the leading destination for Black health information and news, to raise awareness of HIV home testing and encourage testing among African Americans. For resources, FAQs and to purchase, visit www.OraQuick.com.
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