The Center for Disease Control in Tanzania recently deployed a mobile clinic for use at Tanzania National World’s AIDS Day activities in Shinyanga. The BLU-MED Response Systems facility, operated by IntraHealth International Inc., consists of two portable shelters, each providing 48 square meters of floor space. One of the shelters was used for HIV counseling and testing services, while the second shelter provided male circumcision services.

Similar BLU-MED clinics have been in use for almost a year now, successfully providing male circumcision services throughout the Lake Victoria region. CDC/Tanzania has been assessing the feasibility of utilizing these portable clinics to reach the higher prevalence populations on Lake Victoria. Research conducted in Africa has demonstrated 60% lower incidence of HIV infection in circumcised men. The populations on the lake are extremely mobile consisting of fishermen and communities that support them. There are no permanent structures to perform medical services on any of the islands on the Lake.

In Kiswahili the banner reads, “Tohara kwa Mwanaume hupunguza Maambukizi ya VVU. Pata huduma hii leo”
which means “Male Circumcision reduces HIV transmission. Get this service today.”

BLU-MED Response Systems, a division of Alaska Structures, Inc., is The World’s Leader in Deployable Medical Facilities (TM). BLU-MED provides turnkey, portable shelter-based solutions for a wide range of applications including full service hospitals with alternate EOC, CBRNE, triage, isolation, immunization, decontamination, emergency rooms (ER), operating rooms (OR), intensive care units (ICU), burn unit, and mortuaries, mobile field hospitals, alternate command centers, temporary housing and base camp requirements for hospital expansion, surge capacity, and emergency disaster preparedness and response. BLU-MED also offers support services including a full range of medical equipment packages, vendor managed inventory, field deployment, and training & exercise support. For more information, visit BLU-MED.com

Alaska Structures (AKS) designs, engineers and delivers the highest quality fabric building systems for extreme environments. Since it was founded in 1975, over 50,000 AKS shelters have been tested and proven in over 55 countries around the world, including more than 30,000 Alaska Military Shelters and 15,000 Alaska Environmental Control Units in Afghanistan and Iraq. For more information, visit AlaskaStructures.com.