Albany Co-Lab hosts first STI pop-up clinic

With STI rates increasing, and international students struggling to find care, Albany Co-Lab is hosting their first pop-up clinic on March 27th from 12pm to 4pm.

Benjamin Watts, Co-Lab facilitator and sociology student said, “There’s a lot of STI's that don't actually show symptoms until it's too late and they've gotten severely like persevere reaction.” 

With this pop-up clinic, both domestic and international students won’t have to worry about travelling long distances to go to a health clinic.  

This is especially helpful for international students who use Massey health insurance and are on tight budgets.  

“I think it’s a positive surrounding that this is for the international students getting tested on campus compared to somewhere else,” Watts said.  

Sexually transmitted infections are reaching an all-time high for people aged 18 to 25 in Aotearoa, according to Just The Facts. 

There were 486 cases of syphilis across the country in 2022, an 8% increase compared to the year before, according to the Institute of Environmental Science and Research

As resources become more accessible on campus, students won’t have to worry about finding sexual health testing facilities or about paying out of pocket for treatment.