QC to establish clinic for transgender residents

The Quezon City Health Department is currently seeking a site for a planned clinic and support center that will be part of a health program delivering services to the city's transgender residents.

According to a statement issued by the QC Public Affairs and Information Services Office (PAISO), the clinic will be part of the city's efforts to stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV. It will offer basic screening and testing, health check-ups, and psychological and social services including counseling.

At a recent meeting of the Quezon City STD/HIV/AIDS Council (QCSAC), QC Health Department HIV/AIDS program coordinator Dr. Rolly Cruz reported that male-to-female transgender individuals constitute the second largest population being tested for HIV, after men having sex with men (MSM).

QCSAC is also planning to set up an electronic health information system in QC's three city government-run “sundown” social hygiene clinics—clinics that offer offers HIV screening from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. to accommodate work schedules—and provide residents greater access to HIV testing, condoms and HIV lectures.

According to the Quezon City Health Department, 427 HIV cases were reported in QC in the first six months of 2016, with a majority of cases involving sexual transmission by MSMs. — BM, GMA News