NDLI: Availability and accessibility of HIV self-tests and self-sample kits at community pharmacies in the Netherlands

Content Provider	Springer Nature : BioMed Central
Author	Kandil, Chaima Hugtenburg, Jacqueline Heijman, Titia Bos, Hanna Teichert, Martina Finkenflügel, Renee de Coul, Eline Op
Abstract	Background In 2016 the WHO declared HIV self-testing and self-sampling an effective and safe test option that can reduce testing barriers. HIV self-tests and self-sampling kits (HIVST/HIVSS) are available for purchase at Dutch community pharmacies since 2019. We investigated the availability and accessibility of HIVST/HIVSS in community pharmacies, and factors associated with test availability. Methods An online survey among all Dutch community pharmacies (n = 1,987) was conducted between April and June 2021. Availability of HIVST/HIVSS and experiences of pharmacists with the test offer were analyzed with descriptive statistics. The association of pharmacy and pharmacists’ characteristics with HIVST/HIVSS availability was explored by logistic regression analysis. Results In total, 465 pharmacists completed the questionnaire. Of the responding pharmacists, 6.2% (n = 29) offered HIVST/HIVSS. The majority (82.8%) sold between 0 and 20 tests per year. In total, pharmacies sold an estimated 370 HIVST/HIVSS per year. Pharmacies having HIVST/HIVSS available were less often located in moderately-urbanized to rural neighborhoods (OR 0.35, 95%CI 0.16–0.77 versus highly-urbanized), and were less often located in moderate-to-low SES neighborhoods (OR 0.40, 95%CI 0.18–0.88 versus high-SES). Reasons for not offering HIVST/HIVSS by pharmacists were no or little demand (69.3%), and not being familiar with these tests (17.4%). 52% of the pharmacists provided information about testing to test buyers. Reported options to improve the test offer were giving advice about (performing) the test to test buyers (72.4%), placing tests visible on the counter (51.7%), and advertisement (37.9%). Conclusion HIVST/HIVSS have a limited practical availability in Dutch community pharmacies since their introduction in 2019, especially in lower-urbanized and lower-SES areas. Further research is needed to explore how to expand access to HIVST/HIVSS through community pharmacies in the Netherlands, and how to tailor it to the needs of pharmacy clients.
Related Links	https://aidsrestherapy.biomedcentral.com/counter/pdf/10.1186/s12981-023-00529-9.pdf
Ending Page	9
Page Count	9
Starting Page	1
File Format	HTM / HTML
ISSN	17426405
DOI	10.1186/s12981-023-00529-9
Journal	AIDS Research and Therapy
Issue Number	1
Volume Number	20
Language	English
Publisher	BioMed Central
Publisher Date	2023-06-22
Access Restriction	Open
Subject Keyword	Infectious Diseases Virology Pharmacies HIV self-tests HIV self-sampling HIV testing Home testing
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Molecular Medicine Virology Pharmacology (medical)
Journal Impact Factor	2.1/2023
5-Year Journal Impact Factor	2.4/2023

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