By Temiteo Okwakol
Soroti City, August 4, 2024 – The AIDS Information Centre (AIC) proudly partnered with the Miss Tourism Teso event to provide essential health services to the community yesterday at Cloud 9 Club in Soroti City. This collaboration aimed to leverage the high turnout at the event to promote health awareness and provide critical services to the attendees.
The AIC team, led by Denis Olweny, HIV Prevention Manager, and Dr. Katende Ivan, HIV Focal Person at Soroti Regional Referral Hospital, was on-site offering a range of free health services. These included free and confidential HIV testing, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), and the distribution of self-testing kits like Sure Check. Additionally, general health information, with a particular focus on non-communicable diseases, was provided to the attendees.
Abdallah Ochoggiah, AIC’s Advocacy and Communications Specialist, emphasized the importance of partnerships in bringing health services closer to younger generations. “Collaborating with events like Miss Tourism Teso allowed us to reach Gen Z and other young people who might not otherwise have easy access to these essential services. Our goal was to promote health awareness and ensure that everyone had the tools they needed to lead healthy lives,” he said.
AIC was dedicated to making a significant difference in the lives of those affected by HIV/AIDS and promoting overall well-being in the Soroti region and Uganda. The organization’s efforts focused on sustaining epidemic control through comprehensive HIV prevention, care, and treatment services. AIC also aimed to strengthen health systems and manage knowledge effectively to support community health.
The AIC expressed its gratitude to the Miss Tourism Teso organizers for recognizing the importance of integrating health services into their event. By doing so, they helped create a platform that not only celebrated culture and beauty but also prioritized the health and well-being of the community.
AIC looked forward to serving the large number of attendees at the Miss Tourism Teso event. The organization remained committed to its mission of promoting health and preventing HIV/AIDS, ensuring that everyone in the Soroti region had access to the care and support they needed.