Undiagnosed HIV infection remains unacceptably high among gay and bisexual (GB) men: one in five GB men with HIV do not know they have it, and up to eight in ten new infections in this population are estimated to come from them.
National HIV Testing Week (NHTW) was developed and is managed nationally across England by Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) on behalf of HIV Prevention England (HPE), as part of the drive to reduce undiagnosed infection among various populations including GB men.
An increase in the number of individuals testing will potentially lead to more GB men being diagnosed with HIV. These individuals otherwise would have remained at risk of ill-health and a potential unintentional source of new infections.
Aims
• To increase the number of GB men testing
• To increase awareness and acceptability of HIV testing for GB men
• To increase access to HIV testing in both community and statutory settings in order to improve early diagnosis and treatment of HIV (and thus reduce on-going transmission) among those most at risk
As part of HPE’s wider mass-media campaign and related material, encompassing promoting NHTW to increase awareness of:
• The volume and variety of ways and places where an HIV test can be taken
• The benefits of regular HIV testing - and of taking treatment when necessary - for the individual and for the community
• The extent of undiagnosed infection and late diagnosis and its impact on individual health and HIV transmission risk
• The benefits of HIV treatment including its role in reducing onward HIV transmission
• Ways to access HIV testing via online tools and the provision of postal sampling and community-based rapid testing
If these aims are achieved, it is expected to result in an increase in the numbers of at-risk people testing at least once a year, an important step in detecting undiagnosed HIV and cutting new infections.
What are the Lesbian and Gay Foundation (LGF) doing?
During NHTW LGF will be running:
• Six, 2 hour Netreach sessions
• An extended Rapid HIV Clinic at The LGF on Wednesday 27 November, lasting 6 hours
• Engagement activities with local groups throughout the ten boroughs of Greater Manchester – this will involve delivering engaging discussions, and creative projects
• On Saturday 30 November from 7pm LGF are hosting a game-show ‘Sex Tips… Live’ on stage at the New Union Hotel on Canal St
• A full STI Clinic on Tuesday 26 November, held at The LGF
• An additional full STI Clinic on Tuesday 26 November, held at Basement Sauna 12pm-3pm
• HPE ‘Question of the Month’ outreach on Friday 22 and Saturday 23 November
For further information, contact the LGF on 0845 330 3030