Other Specialized Hiv Care
Casey House
Casey House is a hospital providing both compassionate in-patient health care and community programming for people with HIV/AIDS.
Casey House provides:
- Day health care
- Community care and outreach
- help with finding supportive housing for people with HIV/AIDS
- programs that provide volunteer in-home hospice care
How Soon Can Hiv Be Detected By A Blood Test
It depends on the test. Combination tests that use a blood sample drawn from a vein and detect HIV antigen and HIV antibodies can detect HIV infections in most people 2 to 6 weeks after infection. Combination tests that use fingerstick blood samples detect HIV infections about 2 to 12 weeks after infection. Blood tests that detect HIV antibody alone can detect infections in most people about 3 to 12 weeks after infection.
Disclosure Policies In Correctional Facilities
Any individual who believes that his or her employment rights have been violated may file a charge of discrimination with the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission . In addition, an individual, an organization, or an agency may file a charge on behalf of another person in order to protect the aggrieved person’s identity.
You May Like: Does Cookie Johnson Have Hiv
Confidentiality Of Hiv Test Results
HIV Testing in VA: FAQs
Q: What VA staff may have access to a patient’s HIV test result or HIV status?
As with all personal health information, patients’ HIV test results should be available to health care providers only on a “need to know” basis. Usually this means that only providers directly involved in the patient’s health care should seek information about HIV status. Exceptions exist for certain regulatory, quality improvement, research, and public health activities. Questions about access to personal health information can be addressed to local Privacy Officers.
Q: Can HIV test results be entered in the electronic medical record?
Yes. HIV test results are important medical information and should be included in the electronic medical record.
Q: When can HIV infection information be released to someone other than the infected patient?
Violations of these protections often occur inadvertently when health care professionals discuss HIV test results, HIV-related diagnoses or HIV treatment with patients in the presence of relatives or others who accompany patients to clinic visits or who visit them in the hospital. Health care providers should make no assumptions that patients have informed others of their HIV status.
Q: If a patient lacks decision-making capacity, can the patient’s HIV status be revealed to a surrogate decision maker?
How To Get Tested For Hiv
Although there is currently no cure for HIV/AIDS, Ontario offers a number of testing and treatment programs. These programs help people with HIV/AIDS live for many years after contracting the disease.
All doctors, nurse practitioners and midwives in Ontario can order HIV tests. There are three types of tests:
- standard HIV testing: a sample of your blood is taken and sent to a public health laboratory
- anonymous testing: the test is ordered for you and your results are provided using a code known only to you. Anonymous HIV testing is offered at 50 locations in communities across Ontario
- point of care testing: your blood is tested while you wait. If you test negative for HIV/AIDS, you will learn your results immediately. If you test reactive, your blood sample will be sent for standard testing
Read Also: Does Cookie Johnson Have Aids
Who Should Get Tested For Hiv
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone 13 to 64 years old get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care. As a general rule, people at higher risk for HIV should get tested each year. Sexually active gay and bisexual men may benefit from getting tested more often, such as every 3 to 6 months.
Factors that increase the risk of HIV include:
- Having vaginal or anal sex with someone who is HIV positive or whose HIV status you dont know
- Injecting drugs and sharing needles, syringes, or other drug equipment with others
- Exchanging sex for money or drugs
- Having hepatitis or tuberculosis
- Having sex with anyone who has any of the HIV risk factors listed above
Talk to your health care provider about your risk for HIV and how often you should get tested for HIV.
Why Should I Get Tested If I Am Pregnant
If you are pregnant, it is important to determine if you have HIV so you can be treated. Treatment of HIV-infected mothers during pregnancy, precautions at birth, and avoiding breast-feeding can minimize the risk of passing the infection from mother to child. If you are already taking HIV medications when you become pregnant, you should continue to do so during pregnancy and labor and delivery. If you are not taking HIV medications or have a high viral load during pregnancy, giving the antiretroviral drug zidovudine intravenously during labor and delivery and also to the newborn twice a day by mouth for 6 weeks reduces the rate of transmission from 25-33% to about 1-2%.
Read Also: Can You Get Aids From Dried Blood
What Are The Symptoms Of Hiv Infection
Symptoms of the initial HIV infection can mimic those of influenza and other viral infections. The only reliable way to tell if you are infected is to get tested. Many people with HIV do not experience symptoms for years after the initial infection or have symptoms that are very similar to symptoms of other illnesses. For more, see this CDC web page: About HIV.
If You Have A Negative Test Result Does That Mean That Your Partner Is Hiv
No. Your HIV test result reveals only your HIV status.
HIV is not necessarily transmitted every time you have sex. Therefore, taking an HIV test is not a way to find out if your partner is infected.
It’s important to be open with your partner and ask them to tell you their HIV status. But keep in mind that your partner may not know or may be wrong about their status, and some may not tell you if they have HIV even if they know they’re infected. Consider getting tested together so you can both know your HIV status and take steps to keep yourselves healthy.
Don’t Miss: Walgreens At Home Hiv Test
Differences Between Anonymous And Confidential Hiv Testing
Did you know that there is a difference between anonymous and confidential HIV testing? There are actually a number of differences. What we offer on our site is an anonymoushome HIV test. Read on to learn the differences between the two:
1. Anonymous testing is not offered in every state. This is one of the reasons why the FDA Approved home HIV test is so important. You simply cannot walk into a clinic and obtain an anonymous test in 11 states. Your testing will still be accurate and confidential, but the anonymous testing option will not be available to you. .
2. In anonymous testing your name is never revealed. In confidential testing, your name is reported to local government health officials. This is perhaps the greatest difference between the two types of testing. If your test is found positive in confidential testing, your name is reported to local public health officials. This is not necessarily a bad thing such information is collected to provide better medical services and allows health officials to gauge the impact of HIV/AIDS on their population. Confidential testing does NOT release your name by default to insurance companies or employers. The federal government does not receive your name either, only the state. Regulations vary state by state with confidential testing if this is a concern of yours, please check with your state government for more information.
Where Can I Go For Hiv Testing
You can get tested for HIV and other STDs at your doctors office, a community health clinic, the health department, or your local Planned Parenthood health center. You might want to get your HIV test at a place that also has HIV counseling .
You can either get an anonymous” or “confidential HIV test, depending on the laws in the state that you live in. Confidential” testing means your name is on the test, and the results go in your medical records. Your doctors and insurance company may also see the results. If you test positive, your results are sent to your local health department so they know the rates of HIV in your area. But your results are protected by privacy laws, so nobody else can see them without your permission.
“Anonymous” testing means your name isnt on the test. Youll get an ID number that youll use to find out your results. Your results wont go in your medical records, and they wont be sent to your insurance company or the health department youre the only one who will know them.
STD testing, including HIV testing, isnt usually automatically part of your regular checkup or gynecologist exam you have to ask for it directly. Be honest with your nurse or doctor so they can help you figure out what tests are best for you. Dont be embarrassed: your doctor is there to help, not to judge.
Read Also: Can You Get Hiv From Dried Blood
What Does A Positive Hiv Test Result Mean
If you have a positive HIV test result, a follow-up test will be conducted. If the follow-up test is also positive, it means you are HIV-positive.
If you had a rapid screening test, the testing site will arrange a follow-up test to make sure the screening test result was correct. If you used a self-testing kit at home, a positive HIV test result must always be confirmed by additional HIV testing performed in a health care setting. If your blood was tested in a lab, the lab will conduct a follow-up test on the same sample.
If your follow-up test result confirms you are infected with HIV, the next thing is to take steps to protect your health and prevent transmission to others. Begin by talking to your health care provider about antiretroviral therapy . ART is the use of HIV medicines to treat HIV infection. People on ART take a combination of HIV medicines every day. ART can keep you healthy for many years and greatly reduces your chance of transmitting HIV to your sex partner if taken the right way, every day. Your health care provider will help you decide what HIV medicines to take.
If you have health insurance, your insurer is required to cover some medicines used to treat HIV. If you dont have health insurance, or you need help because your insurance doesnt pay for the treatment you need, there are Federal resources that may help you.
To lower your risk of transmitting HIV,
Reduce The Number Of Persons With Hiv Through Teaching Counseling Screening And Referral To Appropriate Resources
Public Health nurses:
- Provide free anonymous HIV testing services to residents of New Brunswick and to inmates in provincial and federal correctional institutions
- Refer infected individuals to the appropriate resources for treatment
- Raise awareness, teach and advise
- Consult and collaborate with physicians and other health care professionals.
During anonymous testing, the Public Health nurse doing the blood test does not know the patients identity. To preserve anonymity, the patients identity is indicated by a code on the chart and laboratory form. To receive test results, patients must present their code in person to the nurse.
To request anonymous HIV testing, please call 811 Tele-Care.
Also Check: Hiv Stays Alive In Dried Blood
Why Testing Is Important And How It Can Help
While HIV is incurable, it is treatable, and by getting a diagnosis followed by the correct treatment and medication, those with HIV can live fuller, longer, and healthier lives.
The only way to find out if you have HIV infection is to be tested. You can have the infection and not show any symptoms, sometimes for years. This increases the risk of you passing the disease to someone else as well, of course, as shortening your own life. It is especially important for pregnant women, as there is medication available which can help prevent the unborn baby picking up the infection.
How Can I Get Tested For Hiv
There are a few different ways you can get access to HIV screening:
- A blood or saliva sample can be collected in a healthcare practitioner’s office or a local clinic and sent to a laboratory for testing. Certain testing centers provide either anonymous or confidential HIV testing and counseling. You can also contact your state or local health department to find out where testing may be available. To find a testing site near you, visit the National HIV and STD Testing Resources webpage.
- In these same settings, there may be a rapid test available, with results that are generated in 20 minutes or less.
- There is a home test for HIV that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration . It uses a saliva sample and results are available in about 20 minutes.
The home test has two limitations:
1. The saliva test is less sensitive than a blood test, so the home test may miss some cases of HIV that a blood test would detect.2. The home test is not as accurate when it is performed at home by a lay person compared to when it is performed by a trained healthcare professional. However, the convenience of home testing might encourage some people who might otherwise be reluctant to go to a healthcare practitioner or clinic to learn their HIV status.
Also Check: Is Undetectable Hiv Contagious
Types Of Hiv Tests Available And When To Test For Hiv
Consultation charges for rapid HIV testing is from $25 -$30.
At Tanjong Pagar Medical Clinic, you can have your HIV test done anonymously without having to provide your personal identifiable details. The anonymous HIV testing is open to all patients regardless of race or nationality.
Below is a recommended timing and schedule for HIV testing and a list of HIV tests provided by our clinic.
| Time from Exposure |
Tanjong Pagar Medical Clinic HIV Testing Singapore
Hiv Disclosure Policies And Procedures
If your HIV test is positive, the clinic or other testing site will report the results to your state health department. They do this so that public health officials can monitor whats happening with the HIV epidemic in your city and state.
Your state health department will then remove all of your personal information from your test results and send the information to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . CDC is the Federal agency responsible for tracking national public health trends. CDC does not share this information with anyone else, including insurance companies. For more information, see CDCs HIV Testing Basics: Privacy.
Many states and some cities have partner-notification lawsmeaning that, if you test positive for HIV, you may be legally obligated to tell your sex or needle-sharing partner. In some states, if you are HIV-positive and dont tell your partner, you can be charged with a crime. Some health departments require healthcare providers to report the name of your sex and needle-sharing partner if they know that informationeven if you refuse to report that information yourself.
Don’t Miss: Cookie Johnson Hiv Positive
Should Pregnant Women Get Tested For Hiv
CDC recommends that all pregnant women get tested for HIV so that they can begin taking HIV medicines if they are HIV positive. Women with HIV take HIV medicines during pregnancy and childbirth to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and to protect their own health. For more information, read the ClinicalInfo fact sheet on Preventing Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV.
How Often Should I Get Tested For Hiv
Regular HIV testing is recommended for everyone who is sexually active. For example, if the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend HIV testing every year if you:
- sometimes have sex without a condom
- are not on the HIV prevention pill
- sometimes have sex with someone whose HIV status you don’t know
Men who have sex with men are recommended to get tested every three to six months, since HIV rates are higher among gay men than many other groups.
The CDC also recommends that everyone over the age of 13 should take an HIV test at least once in their lifetime.
Because HIV testing is so routinely recommended, many health care centers, doctors offices, and hospitals may offer you one in the normal course of a regular checkup or a visit for non-HIV reasons. It’s up to you whether to take them up on that offer, but keep in mind that the earlier a person is diagnosed with HIV, the quicker they can start treatment and ensure they stay healthy over the long term.
You May Like: Does Nba Youngboy Have Hiv
Is Hiv Testing Confidential
Confidential testing means that your HIV test results will include your name and other identifying information, and the results will be included in your medical record. HIV-positive test results will be reported to local or state health departments to be counted in statistical reports. Health departments remove all personal information from HIV test results before sharing the information with CDC. CDC uses this information for reporting purposes and does not share this information with any other organizations, including insurance companies.
Anonymous testing means you dont have to give your name when you take an HIV test. When you take the test, you receive a number. To get your HIV test results, you give the number instead of your name.
Should I Tell Anyone Else Of My Test Results
Yes. If you test positive for HIV infection, it is important that you tell your healthcare practitioners as well as all current and future sex partners and/or anyone with whom you share needles. Counseling services are often available from the clinic that performed the test or from your healthcare provider that will help you to inform the people who need to know.
Don’t Miss: Does Hiv Cause Hair Loss