DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – Public Health Dayton and Montgomery County is hosting a free HIV Testing event on Monday, June 27.

“It’s a way to raise awareness about the need to get tested for HIV,” said Dan Suffoletto with Public Health Dayton and Montgomery County. ”There’s some great advancements in treatment and care of HIV that you can take advantage of, however, you can’t do that unless you know your status.”

This event will be held at the Dr. Charles R. Drew Health Center located at 1323 W. Third St. in Dayton. From 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., professionals will provide all attending with a free HIV test that only takes approximately 10 minutes per person.

“We have a quick and easy set-up where people will just get a small finger prick where some blood will be taken, and then they’ll just wait a few minutes to get the results,” Suffoletto explained.

Everyone who takes a test at the event will be entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card, the release said.

This is not the only event to be held before the end of June, the release said. On June 27, testing and education will be held at Greene County Public Health at 360 Wilson Drive in Xenia from 1:30 p.m. until 4 p.m. and at 1209-3 Sunset Avenue in Springfield from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

On June 30, testing will be held at Equitas Health Medical Center at 1222 South Patterson Blvd. in Dayton from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.

“The only way to know for sure whether you have HIV is to get tested,” said Montgomery County Health Commissioner, Jennifer Wentzel. “Knowing your HIV status helps you make healthy decisions to prevent getting or transmitting HIV and opens the door to prevention or treatment services that enable individuals to live a long and healthy life.”

For those who cannot attend an event, but still want a test, Public Health does offer regular testing, Suffoletto said. Simply call 937-222-5570 to set up an appointment.