If you live in Southampton, Hampshire or Portsmouth or you can order a free postal HIV self sample kit or a free STI self sample kit. The kit will be posted to you and once completed you post it back in prepaid envelope and wait for your results.
All sexual health clinics also provide free HIV testing. You can also request a free HIV test at your GP (family doctor). If you are pregnant you will also be offered a test as part of your ante-natal care. In November, leading up to World Aids Day (1 December each year) there is a national campaign(National HIV Testing Week), where sexual health services also extend outreach testing to a number of other places in the community.
An HIV test is a small blood test, which looks for HIV antibodies in your blood. The antibodies are a sign of your body’s response to the virus and not the virus itself. If you have a positive test result you will be invited to have to have a more detailed test to confirm this diagnosis. That will look at viral load (how much virus you have got in your body) and CD4 count (how many fighting cells you have got.)
If you have been exposed to HIV infection you can access PEP (Post Exposure Prophylaxis). This is a combination of drugs, which can help you to prevent HIV from getting a foothold in your immune system following a risky exposure. PEP should be started as soon possible after unsafe sex and definitely within 72 hours (3 days). It does have side effects, and isn't guaranteed to work and involves taking anti-HIV drugs for 4 weeks, but it could stop you from becoming HIV Positive.
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Many people worry that if they have a HIV test it will affect their chances of getting travel or health insurance. This is not the case. Insurance companies can only ask about positive test results so if you have had a HIV test which came back negative insurers cannot be given this information. For example, all pregnant women passing through Maternity Services in England are tested as standard for HIV.
If you are unsure about why you should take a HIV test or would like to talk to someone confidentially you can speak to staff from the sexual health promotion service.
If you test positive for HIV you should also encourage any sexual partners you have to get tested too. Staff at the sexual health clinic will be able to help contact your partners and invite them to attend a clinic.