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A more individualised donor selection policy was implemented in the UK in 2021, which replaced the previous 3‐month deferral for men who have sex with men (MSM). Other blood services have a variety of policies in place to ensure the virological safety of blood components, ranging from an indefinite ban on MSM, to a defined period of exclusion, or to an individualised risk assessment that is not based on gender or sexual orientation. Justification of these policies should be based on scientific evidence including assessment of lengths of virological window periods, infectious disease epidemiology within donor populations and donation screening assay sensitivities. Developments in molecular technology and assays which can detect both antibodies and antigens in the very early stages of infection have significantly reduced the risk in most developed countries. However, the increasing usage of pre‐exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent acquisition of HIV infection after possible high‐risk sexual contact within the UK blood donor population has been recently noted. It has brought with it new diagnostic challenges within blood screening, notably possible non‐detection of HIV RNA and serological markers following PrEP use despite potential infectivity. The use of other testing strategies such as detection of HIV DNA and screening for non‐declared PrEP usage should be investigated further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International focus on reducing onward HIV transmission emphasizes the need for routine HIV testing and early uptake of antiretroviral treatment (ART). Strategic targets have been set for 2020 to achieve the goal of 90% of people infected with HIV diagnosed, 90% of identified cases on treatment, and 90% of persons on treatment virally suppressed (90–90–90). It is vital to understand the complexity of factors influencing a person's treatment decisions over time and the context which may enable better adherence. In this paper we present findings from the review of published and gray literature (2003–2013) on the documented factors associated with treatment initiation and adherence in the general adult population of Australia, Canada, and the UK. A framework developed by Begley, McLaws, Ross, and Gold [2008. Cognitive and behavioural correlates of non-adherence to HIV anti-retroviral therapy: Theoretical and practical insight for clinical psychology and health psychology.Clinical Psychologist, 12(1), 9–17] in Australia was adapted to summarize the findings. A systematic database search using keywords and a set of inclusion criteria yielded 17 studies (Australia = 6; Canada = 8; UK = 3). In addition 11 reports were included in the review. We found that a person's abilities and motivations (intrapersonal factors, reported in 7 studies) to start and continue ART are influenced by a host of interconnected factors spanning relationship (interpersonal, 3 studies) and broader structural (extrapersonal, 15 studies) factors that are situated within social determinants of health. People therefore evaluate various costs and benefits of starting and staying on treatment, in which biomedical concerns play an important yet often subsidiary role. In this review the economic barriers to care were found to be significant and under-reported, highlighting the persistent health inequities in terms of access to services. Our understanding of the context around people's use of ART remains poor. Qualitative social research within HIV-positive communities is urgently needed to capture people's lived experiences and may address some of this deficit in understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the current global focus on strengthening HIV prevention through greater testing and treatment uptake, it is increasingly salient to identify and address barriers to testing. A review of the published, peer-reviewed literature and national reports from Australia, Canada, and the UK (2003–2013) on barriers to HIV testing was conducted to provide new information relevant to Australia and to complement earlier reviews from Canada and the UK. A systematic database search using keywords and a set of inclusion criteria yielded 36 studies (Australia = 13; Canada = 6; and the UK = 17). In addition 17 unpublished reports were included in the review. Our study uses a novel, comprehensive framework to describe barriers to HIV testing, and thus contributes to moving beyond the traditional patient–provider–system categorization. Within that framework, barriers are categorized as either intrapersonal (reported in 15 studies), interpersonal (21), or extrapersonal (16) and conceptualized within wider sociocultural and structural contexts. People's abilities and motivations to test (intrapersonal factors) are influenced by a host of interconnected factors spanning relationship (interpersonal) and broader socioeconomic, political and cultural (extrapersonal) factors. We suggest that the relative effects of interventions targeting barriers to HIV testing at the intrapersonal and interpersonal levels are limited by the extent to which the social determinants of health are addressed. The framework may also lend itself to thinking about the enabling factors for HIV testing, and future research may investigate the application of that framework for strategizing the most effective response. Future studies should also capture the lived experiences of barriers to HIV testing experienced by patients, especially in populations which are hard to reach based on social and geographic distance. Context-specific studies to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of various interventions proposed in the literature to address barriers to HIV testing are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of UK postgraduate students is falling. Strategies to promote and encourage UK students to study for postgraduate degrees are thus of prime importance. This paper describes a series of events aimed at UK schoolchildren aged 12-15 (school years 9 and 10) which were designed to increase awareness of postgraduate research degrees, specifically the PhD, and report on enthusiasm for postgraduate research after the events. The events involved students studying for PhD degrees in medical and human sciences at the University of Manchester and five schools across the Greater Manchester region. At each event children learned about the PhD degree and about the individual research projects the postgraduate students were conducting. Questionnaires were used to determine how many children knew what a PhD was prior to attending an event, whether they would consider studying for a PhD after the event and, if so, why they would consider studying for a PhD. 324 children attended the events. Forty-six percent said they did not know what a PhD was prior to the event. Seventy-five percent said they would consider studying for a PhD after the event. The following main motivational themes identified were: personal prospects, qualification and personal learning, interest and enjoyment, making a difference, and practical new information or understanding. These events increased awareness of, and enthusiasm for, postgraduate study and identified the major motivating factors of children in UK school years 9 and 10 for postgraduate research study. Events targeting these motivating factors should be used to encourage more UK students to undertake postgraduate research degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]