Do I have to go to a clinic to get tested? Getting tested for HIV has never been easier in the UK, with a number of options available:Visiting a sexual health clinic in person;Speaking to your GP;Attending an HIV testing centre;Ordering either a self test (which you take yourself and see the results of within a few minutes) or a postal test (which you take yourself before sending the sample off to a lab) online. These are free to order and arrive in discrete packaging. “You don’t have to go to a clinic to get tested for HIV,” says Fluskey. “You could do if you wanted to, but you can also get tests which you can do at home yourself and then you can either see the results in about 15 minutes, or, for some tests you do at home, you can send off the sample and then you get the results sent back to you.” Home testing is becoming increasingly common in England, with the UKHSA reporting that 50 per cent of all HIV tests conducted in 2022 were done using ones ordered online – a stark increase from just 19 per cent in 2019.

Source: The Times February 05, 2024 10:42 UTC