Planned Parenthood gets $75,000 grant to fight syphilis | Health

The Tennessee Department of Health has awarded Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region (PPGMR) a grant to fund a major syphilis elimination project in Shelby County, Tennessee.

The federal grant will provide funding to allow PPGMR to provide free syphilis testing in its Health Center at 2430 Poplar Avenue and at an off-site afterhours location. The free testing will begin during October, though the exac start date has not been set.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chose Shelby County as a funding site for the project because of the high rates of syphilis transmission in our community. In 2009, Shelby County ranked fifteenth of all counties in the U.S. for symptomatic syphilis. Shelby County has the highest number of newly-diagnosed syphilis cases in Tennessee, and the infection rate for all stages of syphilis is five times higher in Shelby County than in the U.S. overall.

PPGMR was chosen for this grant because of its proven track record of reaching at-risk populations for HIV testing and prevention counseling and its strong relationships with other community service providers in the Memphis area.

"The syphilis elimination project dovetails well with PPGMR's community HIV testing and prevention counseling program," said PPGMR CEO Barry Chase. "Thousands of Mid-South women and teens rely on Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region for preventive and reproductive health care. This is another way we can serve vulnerable and at-risk populations who may have no where else to turn for health care." 

To learn more about PPGMR’s preventive health services and community outreach, please visit our website: www.ppgmr.org.