Soweto says ‘yes’ to Zola clinic

19 August 2011

ANOVA IN THE NEWS: An article published on the health-e website reports that the community has responded in an overwhelmingly positive way to the free circumcision service offered at the recently launched Zola clinic.

The clinic performs up to 150 medical male circumcisions in a day and many young men hear about the service via word-of-mouth. One young man is quoted as saying that he had recruited as many as 20 friends, who have subsequently been circumcised at the clinic in Soweto.

Another man quoted in the article said that he had also accepted the free HIV counseling and testing offered by the clinic. The young man said he took pride in the fact that young people were taking steps to remain HIV-negative.

The article also touched on Zola’s community outreach programme which involves the training of traditional healers. The traditional healers have been integrated into the Zola team and through the clinic provide primary healthcare information and services to their community.

Zola clinic is run by the Centre for HIV and AIDS Prevention Studies (CHAPS). CHAPS is supported by the Anova Health Institute and funded by USAID/PEPFAR.

To read the article click here.