NR 511 Week 6 Assignment; National HIV Curriculum - HIV Screening Recommendations

HIV Prevention Counseling: An interactive process of assessing risk, recognizing specific behaviors that increase the risk for acquiring or transmitting HIV, and developing a plan to take specific steps to reduce risks. Goals of Routine Screening Identifying persons with HIV is the first step in the HIV care continuum. The primary desired outcomes associated with routine HIV screening are two-fold: (1) improve survival and quality of life for the person with HIV, and (2) prevent the person with HIV from transmitting HIV to others (Figure 2). Persons who have acquired HIV, but have not yet been diagnosed, cannot obtain the benefits of modern antiretroviral therapy while they remain undiagnosed. Page 2/23 CDC HIV Screening Recommendations Overview of Routine HIV Screening Recommendations In 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a recommendation to perform routine HIV screening for all adults and adolescents in all health care settings in the United States.[6] These 2006 recommendations also addressed indications for repeat HIV screening, consent and pretest information, indications for diagnostic tests, and screening of pregnant people.[6] The CDC HIV screening recommendations have been endorsed by numerous prominent national organizations nada have led to a fundamental shift from risk-based screening to universal HIV screening. Further, the recommendation to not require formal written consent for HIV testing facilitated the implementation of HIV testing in busy clinical settings. Studies have shown that requirements for written consent serve as a barrier to HIV testing and that eliminating the requirement for written consent facilitates HIV testing.[19,20,21] The following summarizes the key aspects of these 2006 CDC HIV screening recommendations.[6] Screening for HIV infection Routine screening for HIV infection should be performed for the following groups: All persons 13-64 years of age and in all health care settings All persons diagnosed with tuberculosis. All persons seeking treatment for sexually transmitted infections, including all persons attending sexual health clinics. Repeat Screening Repeat HIV testing should be performed at least once a year for persons considered at high risk for acquiring HIV. The following groups are considered at high risk for acquiring HIV: Persons who inject drugs and their sex partners, Persons who exchange sex for money or drugs, Sex partners of persons with HIV, Persons or their partners who have had more than one sex partner since their most recent HIV test Note: In 2017, the CDC addressed the frequency of repeated HIV screening in men who have sex with men (MSM) and concluded no change was warranted in the 2006 recommendations.[22,23] These 2017 recommendations note that clinicians can consider the benefits of offering more frequent screening (e.g. once every 3 or 6 months) for MSM at increased risk for acquiring HIV.[23] Multiple guidelines recommend that all persons taking HIV preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medications should have HIV testing every 3 months, unless they acquire HIV.[23,24,25] Consent and Pretest Information The following summarizes recommendations regarding the consent and counseling related to pretest information: The HIV screening process should be voluntary. Persons undergoing HIV testing should be informed that HIV