Get checked, get cheesy: Pee for Pizza at Mohawk

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can go unnoticed since they don’t often cause symptoms.

With Sexual Health Week in full swing, the Mohawk Students’ Association (MSA) teamed up with the Health and Wellness Centre (HWC) to bring awareness to STIs.

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 23, students at the Fennell campus could make their way to the G wing’s Health Study Lounge to fill out a form, take a quick confidential STI test, and receive a voucher for a free slice of pizza from the campus’ Pizza Pizza.

With staff repping ‘Pee for Pizza’ t-shirts, the Sexual Health Week event was judgement-free with nothing but students’ best interests in mind, with no registration or health card required.

Chelsea Brown, a counsellor who provides services with the HWC and Mohawk’s Fennell Residence, guided students to the MSA study lounge and explained what the testing entails.

“It’s a free Chlamydia and Gonnorhea testing,” Brown said. “It’s a quick, easy way for students to be proactive about their health.” 

Jessalyn Carvajal, a health promotion and screening supervisor with the HWC, was one of the staff members greeting students into the lounge as upbeat music played and a slideshow projected at the entrance, informing students about upcoming HWC events and providing sexual health information.

“The Health and Wellness Centre for Mohawk College has partnered up with the MSA and Hamilton Public Health to provide mass STI screening for students,” Carvajal said. “As a thank you for taking care of yourselves, and the community, and making your sexual health a priority, we’re giving away free pizza.”

Free STI testing is an annual event at Mohawk, according to Carvajal.

“We do it during Sexual Health Week, usually in the fall semester.”

If students missed the opportunity to get tested on campus, the City of Hamilton provides Sexual Health Clinics for access to birth control, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections and access to free condoms.