title: Standardised opt-out testing for HIV.
abstract: This article offers a literature review of the benefits of, and problems associated with, a standardised opt-out screening programme for HIV, and the attitudes of healthcare professionals and patients to its potential introduction in emergency departments. There is a lack of research on the subject in the UK and so the article relies on work undertaken in the US and on opt-out testing in antenatal services in the UK. It reviews the potential benefits of such a programme, in particular the opportunities it offers to improve public health and reduced the stigma associated with HIV, and discusses the issue of consent.
authors.affiliation: Homerton Hospitals NHS Trust, London. danna.millett@homerton.nhs.uk
authors.forename: Danna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Millett
mesh_terms: D015492:AIDS Serodiagnosis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000592:standards; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D012015:Reference Standards; D057545:Social Stigma