TARLAC CITY (PIA) -- Department of Health (DOH) underscored the improved access to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) services in Tarlac brought about by the Kanlahi Community Center.
 
The newly-opened center provides HIV prevention, testing and support services for various clients in priority groups.
 
Provincial DOH Office Tarlac Head Maria Noel Lim said the Kanlahi Community Center is another milestone in the comprehensive delivery of HIV services to Tarlaqueños.
 
“In the middle of the pandemic, we have seen the importance of community-based interventions to bridge the service gaps, and provide additional options and modalities of care for our clients,” Lim said.
 
Also, she pointed out the role of strengthened public and private partnership in generating impactful activities for every Tarlaqueño.
 
“We assert our full support as we trudge towards our common ground of serving every constituent the service that they truly deserve—towards a HIV responsive generation,” she noted.
 
In behalf of the LGBTQIA + community, Miss Gay Moncada 2022 John Harvey Balignasay backed the Kanlahi Community Center in preventing the spread of HIV virus and stigma.
 
“As an HIV advocate, I want to encourage the youth, most specifically the members of the rainbow community, to be responsible in everything that we do. If the whole community is aware of what HIV is, [it is] possible that we can prevent ourselves from acquiring this virus and we can stop the stigma,” Balignasay said. 
 
The center is located at Unit 4, Chua Building, Zone 1 in barangay Maliwalo, Tarlac City and is open from Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. It can be reached through 0915-673-7158.
 
It is operated by Myrna’s Café under the supervision of the Regional TB-HIV Support Network Incorporated and the HIV Support Network Federation of Central Luzon with funding from United States Agency for International Development’s EPIC Project. (CLJD/TJBM-PIA 3)