Barcelona 2013
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| Abstract #204 - E-Posters English | ||||
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Session: 50.107: E-Posters English (Poster) on Sunday in Chaired by Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Laura Fernàndez - ICO; Agència Salut Pública de Catalunya, Spain |
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| Additional Authors: Dr. Jordi Casabona, Sra Cristina Sanclemente, Dra. Anna Esteve, Dra. Victoria Gonzalez, Grupo HIVITS TS, | ||||
| Aim: Rapid HIV tests can play an important role in HIV prevention activities and expand access to testing in both clinical and nonclinical settings. Use of oral specimens, instead of blood specimens, offers some benefits for HIV testing outside health care settings and laboratories, in point-of-care settings: is a non-invasive method, can be performed almost anywhere, eliminate costs of training and equipment to perform a blood extraction, and reduce risks of manipulating biological materials and wastes. The objective of the study is to assess the acceptability, feasibility and impact of introducing oral rapid test technologies at the network of community-based voluntary counselling and testing (CBVCT) services established in the context of the European project co-funded by the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers (EAHC), ?HIV community based testing practices in Europe? (HIV-COBATEST) (Grant Agreement N° 2009 12 11). | ||||
| Method / Issue: Nine CBVCT services members of the European Network from 9 different countries are participating in the study (BCNCheckpoint-Hispanosida (Spain), AIDES (France), STOP AIDS (Denmark), LEGEBITRA (Slovenia), AIDS-Hilfe (Germany), VCT Center at the Lighthouse of Czech Aids Help Society (Czech Republic), ARAS (Romania), Checkpoint LX (Portugal), ACASC (Spain)). During an initial period of 15 days, the oral rapid test has been introduced to the CBVCT network services concurrently with the usual test used by these services, i.e. during this period the services has performed simultaneously oral rapid test and conventional or rapid blood test. After this period, for a period of three months, the participating centres have offered both oral test and the test usually used. Clients have to choose between these two possibilities. A short questionnaire has been administered to all the clients tested with the oral rapid test during the introduction period of 15 days of parallel testing, to analyze the experience of being tested with an oral rapid test. After the study period, a questionnaire to assess acceptability and feasibility of the test will be distributed among all the providers. | ||||
| Results / Comments: The acceptability and feasibility of introducing the oral rapid test in the CBVCT services network will be assessed by analyzing the initial 15 days period of parallel testing, and by the description of users profile and description of pitfalls identified by users during the entire period of study with the administration of questionnaires to clients and providers. The impact of the introduction of rapid oral testing will be analyzed by studying the variation of activity from the pre and post oral rapid test introduction: analyzing the increase in the number of tests performed and in the prevalence of positive results. Data analysis is planned by the end of June 2013. | ||||
| Discussion: The expected outcome is to complete information about the impact of introducing rapid oral testing at CBVCT sites. This information will be very useful to stakeholders to assess the testing strategy. Rapid HIV antibody tests can help reduce the number of unrecognized infections by improving access to testing facilities and increase the number of people tested who know their results, with the aim to ensure positive prevention and early access to treatment. | ||||
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