Barriers to HIV testing among Australian gay men

Abstract

For men who do not engage in risky sex, the decision not to test is probably reasonable, but those who engage in non condom-based risk reduction may be at some increased risk and should be encouraged to test relatively often. Changes to Australia's national HIV testing policy may ameliorate some of the need to return for second clinic visits to receive results, but the policy still requires full implementation, including the introduction of rapid point-of-care HIV testing to Australia. Among men who engage in UAIC, there appears to be a particular need for information about the benefits of early treatment after HIV diagnosis and about the relative likelihood of experiencing HIV seroconversion illness.

Australian sexually transmissible infection and HIV testing guidelines for asymptomatic men who have sex with men 2014: a review of the evidence

“…178,179 To improve access to STI and HIV testing for Australian MSM, strategies such as rapid HIV testing, information technology and the use of social media [180][181][182] should be fully utilised. The testing guidelines outlined in Table 1 aim to guide clinicians in their STI and HIV testing practice for MSM and provide an additional clinical tool to assist in reducing the community prevalence of STIs and HIV among Australian MSM.…”

Adapting behavioural surveillance to antiretroviral-based HIV prevention: reviewing and anticipating trends in the Australian Gay Community Periodic Surveys

“…It is likely to require a substantial ongoing effort to further increase HIV testing uptake and frequency and address ongoing barriers, such as the fear and inconvenience of testing. [27][28][29][30] Since 2000, there have been substantial, positive changes in the uptake of HIV treatment and the proportion of Australian HIV-positive GBM with an undetectable viral load. Our data suggest that in 2015, Australia nearly reached the UNAIDS target of 90% of diagnosed, HIV-positive GBM being on treatment and that over 90% achieved viral suppression several years ago.…”

Effect of testing experience and profession on provider acceptability of rapid HIV testing after implementation in public sexual health clinics in Sydney

“…However, if rapid HIV testing (RHT) and other novel approaches to testing are adopted, this may reduce barriers to and increase acceptability of HIV testing, and may facilitate more frequent testing for high-risk populations [8,9]. In Australia, HIV testing has traditionally involved venipuncture specimen collection at a clinic with results provided 1 week later in person or by telephone [10]. Finding time to test, inconvenience and having to return for results are recognized barriers to more frequent HIV testing among MSM [10,11].…”

“…In Australia, HIV testing has traditionally involved venipuncture specimen collection at a clinic with results provided 1 week later in person or by telephone [10]. Finding time to test, inconvenience and having to return for results are recognized barriers to more frequent HIV testing among MSM [10,11].…”

“…Finding time to test, inconvenience and having to return for results are recognized barriers to more frequent HIV testing among MSM [10,11]. In contrast, RHT involves finger-prick blood or oral fluid specimen collection with results provided during the same visit, which may make testing more convenient.…”