A growing number of students are taking the free AIDS test offered by the College, a trend that health administrators say reflects increasing acceptance of the test as part of a regular health maintenance routine.
According to Dr. Nield Mercer, assistant director for clinical affairs at the College Health Service, about 150 students each year are tested for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome at Dick's House.
Mercer said slightly more males than females are tested each year.
"I think the stigma is down for most people," said Neil Gillies, manager of the out-patient department at the Health Service.
Gillies said people who are starting new relationships often want to be tested.
Betsy Eccles, infectious disease nurse clinician at the DHMC said the number of people tested doubled in one day after Magic Johnson announced he had Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) in 1991. The number has remained fairly constant since then.
Many students who come in for tests are aware enough of the AIDS situation that they know when they have engaged in risky behavior, said Janice Sundnas, the new director of the women's health resource at Dick's House.
"I think that individuals have gotten the message that if they're sexually active, they are at risk to get AIDS," Sundnas said. "Most of the women I see are fairly well-educated about HIV."
So far, there have been no positive cases of AIDS at Dick's House.
"Quite honestly, many of the people here are at very low risk," Sundnas said.
Sundnas said Dick's House is trying to make AIDS testing more accessible to students.
In the past, Dick's House had problems with limited accessibility and confidentiality. Callers to Dick's House are asked their names, phone numbers and their problem.
"For some women, they feel a little uncomfortable calling the Health Service," Sundnas said. "Some people were feeling that it couldn't be very confidential."
The women's health resource and Dick's House have tried to increase confidentiality by allowing people to remain anonymous over the phone and not requiring students to directly ask for AIDS testing or discuss any other problem of a personal nature.
Sundnas said often AIDS testing is done not as a special visit but as part of a regular checkup.
"AIDS testing is usually put in a greater context of any office visit," she said.
But Sundnas said more women have to become educated about other sexually-transmitted diseases.
"I think we possibly have to do a better job" addressing the "whole gamut of STDs instead of focusing on just one or two," Sundnas said.
The DHMC and Planned Parenthood in West Lebanon also offer an AIDS testing service.
Planned Parenthood charges different rates based on the income of the patient. The average cost is between $20 and $55, said Susan Barton, health care associate for Planned Parenthood. DHMC's testing service costs $20, but the fee can be waived.
The tests at Dick's House and Planned Parenthood are similar. Both are confidential services and both require a two-week wait for test results. Patients tested at Dick's House can take the test under a false name, and the result of the AIDS test does not go into the patient's medical records.
The DHMC offers a state-sponsored anonymous program. This is different from a confidential system because the nurses and physicians do not know the names of patients. Only one copy of the report is printed and that is given to the patient.
According to Eccles, about 700 people from Vermont and New Hampshire are tested every year.
