Blood test case of students: Black Rose group leader punished

Authorities determined that the Black Rose group had performed HIV tests on people under 15 years old without the written consent of their parents or legal guardians. The fine imposed on Ms. Dinh Thi Ut was VND7.5 million.

Vụ lấy máu học sinh xét nghiệm: Trưởng nhóm Bông hồng đen bị xử phạt - Ảnh 1.

The Black Rose group describes the process of taking blood samples from students.

The decision to impose the fine was issued based on the results of the work and inspection of the Hai Phong Department of Health with the Black Rose group and a number of students residing in Do Son district. These are people who came to attend HIV prevention counseling sessions of the Black Rose group, then had their fingerprints and personal information taken, received counseling and received money from 50,000 VND to 100,000 VND/session.

Among these, many students had their blood tested for HIV, with negative results. At the time of the blood test, some were under 15 years old. However, there were cases where students admitted to having intentionally provided false personal information about their age and address.

Regarding this incident, on August 22, the Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control ( Ministry of Health ) informed: The Black Rose - Black Rainbow Group is a self-help group commonly known as a community-based organization, formed on the voluntary basis of its members and participating in HIV/AIDS prevention and control activities since August 2011.

The group is currently implementing the project "Protecting the Future - Strengthening new community-based interventions to control HIV infection among young drug users in Vietnam" in Hai Son ward, Do Son district, Hai Phong city; implemented by the Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives (SCDI) with funding from Expertise France of France. The project was approved by the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA) in Decision No. 1379/QD-LHHVN dated December 16, 2020 to be implemented in 7 provinces and cities, including Hai Phong.

The Black Rose - Black Rainbow Group also implements a number of HIV/AIDS prevention and control activities under the VUSTA HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Project funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for the period 2021 - 2023.

The Black Rose - Black Rainbow group has 5 members, one of whom has attended a training course on HIV testing counseling in the community.

The Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control agreed with the recommendation of the Hai Phong CDC to temporarily suspend the activities of the Black Rose group to collect information to verify the recent incident.

The Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control requests the Department of Health and CDC Hai Phong to thoroughly instruct community organizations participating in HIV/AIDS prevention and control in the area to strictly implement regulations and professional procedures, and test the right subjects with risky behaviors on a voluntary basis.

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