The doctors, nurses and administrators at Island Sexual Health centre are hoping bigger digs will allow them to increase their community assistance.
The move from their Fort Street location to 101-3960 Quadra St. will mean more clinical space, six exam rooms instead of three, more hours, more privacy and more community-based workshops for everyone from young people, to health professionals and even parents.
Also, the Island Sexual Health Society is planning a night of salsa dancing for Friday to raise $15,000 to pay for three more exam beds to fit the new clinical space.
Bobbi Turner, executive director of the Vancouver Island Sexual Health Society, said the group is already providing services for 20,000 client visits per year and expects those numbers to grow in the bigger space.
"It's a significant leap for the organization," Turner said, "but we are already bursting at the seams."
She said the organization began back in 1969 with a single doctor and a nurse. It has since grown to the point now where sees 15 doctors rotate along with nurses and counsellors to pro-mote healthy sexual practices.
Vancouver Island Sexual Health assists clients with all forms of birth control and the appropriate education. But it also provides services such as routine pap tests, pelvic exams, pregnancy tests, breast and testicle exams and testing for sexually transmitted diseases.
All testing and services are completely confidential and nonjudgmental, Turner said.
"We are here to help, not to shake fingers."
The society also spends a lot of time in schools teaching healthy sex practices to young people.
The point is to provide young people with information to allow them to confidently assert control over sexual issues, making the choices that are smart and right for them, she said.
With the new location, the centre sees itself serving even bigger numbers of young people from West Shore and the Saanich Peninsula.
The new centre will also have space to provide workshops and counselling to people such as parents on topics including how to broach sexual discussions with their kids.
They are also seeing more older clients - from middle-age to people in their 80s. Some are coming because they don't have a specific family doctor, but others are coming because they are looking for information.
Turner said it's becoming more common for people older than 30 to consider their own sexual health as they embark upon relationships with new partners and get themselves tested ahead of time.
The Island Sexual Health salsa fundraiser is Friday at the Victoria Event Centre at 1415 Broad St.
A salsa dance lesson is scheduled from 8: 30 to 9: 30 p.m.
Music from the Pablo Cardenas Latin Combo, a DJ and dancing goes from 9: 30 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Tickets are $20 and available in advance from the Island Sexual Health centre at 200-1770 Fort St.
For more information about the Vancouver Island Sexual Health centre, go to islandsexualhealth.org.
