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Case/Article Review 4
You have two minutes to read the enclosed article, and you will subsequently be asked a range of questions by the interviewer. You may wish to make notes, however please note you will not be allowed to refer to your notes or the article during the discussion.
‘’Offering routine HIV tests to people when they register with new GP surgeries in high-risk areas is cost-effective and could save lives, a study has shown. The researchers are calling for HIV screening to be introduced in all 74 local authorities in England with high rates of infection with the virus.
High HIV prevalence is defined as having more than two diagnosed infections per 1,000 adults in a given area.
An estimated 13,500 people in the UK do not know they carry the virus that causes Aids, meaning they miss out on treatment and pose an infection risk to others. Dr Werner Leber, from Queen Mary University of London, led the study, which involved more than 86,000 people from 40 GP surgeries. He said: “We’ve shown that HIV screening in UK primary care is cost-effective and potentially cost-saving, which is contrary to widespread belief.
“This is an important finding given today’s austerity. Financial pressures, particularly within local authorities’ public health budgets, mean that the costs of HIV testing are under intense scrutiny, and in some areas, investment in testing has fallen.”
The scientists conducted a trial which tested the effectiveness of rapid finger-prick HIV testing as part of the standard health check carried out during GP registration. They found it led to a fourfold increase in the HIV diagnosis rate.
A mathematical model showed primary care HIV screening in high-prevalence areas became cost-effective after 33 years. But factoring in the higher costs of care for people diagnosed late showed that screening could become cost-effective far sooner. The annual cost of rolling out HIV screening to all 74 high-prevalence authorities was estimated at £4m.’’
(Adapted from: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jul/30/hiv-tests-for-gps-new-patients-could-save-lives-and-money-says-study)
High HIV prevalence is defined as having more than two diagnosed infections per 1,000 adults in a given area.
An estimated 13,500 people in the UK do not know they carry the virus that causes Aids, meaning they miss out on treatment and pose an infection risk to others. Dr Werner Leber, from Queen Mary University of London, led the study, which involved more than 86,000 people from 40 GP surgeries. He said: “We’ve shown that HIV screening in UK primary care is cost-effective and potentially cost-saving, which is contrary to widespread belief.
“This is an important finding given today’s austerity. Financial pressures, particularly within local authorities’ public health budgets, mean that the costs of HIV testing are under intense scrutiny, and in some areas, investment in testing has fallen.”
The scientists conducted a trial which tested the effectiveness of rapid finger-prick HIV testing as part of the standard health check carried out during GP registration. They found it led to a fourfold increase in the HIV diagnosis rate.
A mathematical model showed primary care HIV screening in high-prevalence areas became cost-effective after 33 years. But factoring in the higher costs of care for people diagnosed late showed that screening could become cost-effective far sooner. The annual cost of rolling out HIV screening to all 74 high-prevalence authorities was estimated at £4m.’’
(Adapted from: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jul/30/hiv-tests-for-gps-new-patients-could-save-lives-and-money-says-study)
Outline the main issues raised.