Friday, March 10, marks the 12th annual National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 2017 (NWGHAAD). Sponsored by the Office on Women’s Health, part of the U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services, the day and related events throughout the month shine light on how HIV impacts women and girls.

This year’s theme is “The Best Defense Is a Good Offense.” Whether you are in a relationship or dating, the WomensHealth.gov NWGHAAD page spells out simple, effective steps that can to help prevent HIV infection for you and your partner:

  • Use condoms every time you have sex.
  • Get an HIV test, which is free and confidential.
  • Be monogamous.
  • Do not abuse alcohol or drugs.
  • Talk to your doctor about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) or post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) if you think you’re at risk for HIV.

The website also offers fact sheets and other resources. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also includes a set of NWGHAAD resources, including several images that are sharable on social media, like the one below:

One of the NWGHAAD 2017 resourcesCDC.GOV

For a collection of POZ articles on women and HIV, click #Women.