Gloucestershire Health Service Promotes HIV Testing During Awareness Week
Gloucestershire Health Service Encourages HIV Testing During Awareness Week
Next week (9-15 February) marks National HIV Testing Week, an annual campaign organised by HIV Prevention England to raise awareness about the importance of regular testing. The Gloucestershire Health & Care NHS Trust is urging local residents to get tested, as part of the national effort to reduce the number of people living with undiagnosed HIV.
Details
The UK government has set a goal of achieving zero HIV transmissions and zero HIV-related stigma by 2030. To help reach this target, the Gloucestershire Health & Care NHS Trust is offering free HIV testing as part of its standard sexual health screening.
“Testing for HIV is quick and easy – all it takes is a finger-prick test,” explained Dr Ayo-ola Okunwobi-Smith, Consultant Genitourinary Medicine and HIV. “Testing is really important because people can live with HIV for a long time without any symptoms. Finding out your status means you can start treatment, stay healthy, and avoid passing the virus on to anyone else.”
The trust has also released a podcast interview with Mark, a patient diagnosed with HIV in 2015, who discusses his experiences and how he is managing to live a happy, healthy life with the virus thanks to the available treatments.
What You Need to Know
– National HIV Testing Week: 9-15 February 2026
– Free HIV testing available through Gloucestershire Health & Care NHS Trust’s Sexual Health Service
– Contact the Sexual Health Service on 0300 421 8100 or visit www.ghc.nhs.uk/sexual-health to book an appointment
– Podcast interview with HIV patient available on the trust’s website