The Levinsky Clinic, which is part of the Tel Aviv District Health Office, is a community clinic that identifies and treats sexually transmitted diseases. The clinic was set up in 2002 as a result of the increase in the cases of gonorrhea in the late 1990’s, especially in the district of Tel Aviv, and of the increase in the phenomenon of trading women at that time. The clinic provides a scope of free of charge medical and psyhco–social services, similar to other sex clinics in other large cities in the world. It operates in accordance to the guidelines of the American Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) after adapting them to the conditions in Israel.
Clinic Services
All of the services are provided free of charge and anonymously for anyone requesting them, without consideration of age, sex, sexual orientation, civil or financial status. The services include:
- A set of examinations (determined during the phone consultation with the doctor or therapist).
- A set of medications.
- Counselling and guidance in safe sex practices and sexually transmitted diseases.
- Supplementary treatment, if necessary, by social workers.
Examinations in the clinic are carried out according to the decision of the doctor/therapist and are subject to professional considerations according to the conversation with the therapist.
The Clinic’s Array of Activities
The Levinsky Clinic reaches out to the general public and is designed for any person who has had sex and is interested in testing to rule out sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
Among our target groups are also men and women who are prostitutes, drug addicts, men who have sex with men, men and women who have sex with multiple partners, individuals arriving from countries afflicted with HIV, or any individual who sees himself as being at a high risk of infection, for any reason.
At the Levinsky Clinic there are different areas of activities that highlight the clinic’s activities in different and various ways. A team of social workers from different fields helps in supporting and developing the clinic’s various fields of activities.
What should you expect when visiting the clinic?
Patients who come to the Levinsky Clinic will meet with one of the clinic’s staff members – a doctor, nurse, social worker or therapist. The purpose of the meeting is to understand the reason for the referral to the clinic, the patient’s risk factors, sexual habits and other relevant characteristics of unprotected sexual contact (if there was one), which resulted in the patient presenting to the clinic. On the basis of this conversation, the staff member will determine the package of services needed by the patient.
Before the patient comes to the clinic with symptoms of a sexually transmitted disease, it is possible to get tested by a doctor. It is recommended that another person be present during this test – another staff member or the patient’s companion. After the test, the doctor will decide if additional tests are needed.
For reception hours go here
