Incentives for voluntary HIV testing in NHS staff

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Rising HIV seroprevalence in the UK necessitates understanding testing behaviors among healthcare workers.
• Limited data exists on voluntary HIV counselling and testing (VCT) acceptability among National Health Service (NHS) staff.
• Healthcare professionals are crucial for public health initiatives, making their engagement with HIV testing vital.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify barriers to HIV testing among NHS employees.
• To explore strategies for overcoming these barriers.
• To determine motivational factors and disincentives for NHS staff undergoing VCT.

Main Methods:

• Anonymous postal questionnaire survey of new employees at a London district general hospital.
• Collected demographic and attitudinal data, allowing multiple responses for reasons for/against VCT.
• Excluded participants unable to communicate in English.

Main Results:

• A 63% response rate (69 participants); 76% female, 72% first language English, 30% White British.
• 41% had a previous HIV test; 62% would consider future testing.
• Key motivators for testing: knowledge of status (79%), treatment benefits (40%), informing family (44%). Reasons for not testing: already tested negative (30%), "rather not know" (26%).

Conclusions:

• Encourage VCT among NHS staff due to recruitment from high HIV prevalence areas.
• Provide clear information on accessing HIV testing and the benefits of early detection of blood-borne viruses.
• Address barriers and leverage motivators to increase VCT uptake in the NHS workforce.