title: British Association for Sexual Health and HIV Scottish investigation 2010-2011: reasons for non-attendance in individuals lost to follow-up for HIV care for more than 12 months in Scotland.
abstract: As of 31 March 2011, 6696 HIV diagnoses had ever been reported in Scotland; of these, 1791 individuals had died, 3339 were attending specialist services, but the remainder had defaulted from specialist care; an investigation into their reasons for non-attendance, and the efforts of services to re-engage, was undertaken by British Association for Sexual Health and HIV Scottish branch using a web-based survey questionnaire. Twelve of the 13 Scottish HIV services returned information for 424 of 579 eligible cases; 112 of these 424 individuals were identified as genuine non-attendees. Findings indicate that the epidemiology of these non-attendees is similar to that of the whole Scottish HIV cohort. Three-quarters of individuals failed to attend a booked appointment following their last known attendance and very few attempts to contact non-attending individuals were successful. This survey has refocused attention on those lost to follow-up, while quality of the national data-set has improved, providing a clearer epidemiological picture of people living with HIV in Scotland.
authors: Health Protection Scotland, UK. beth.cullen@nhs.net
authors: B L
authors: BL
authors: Cullen
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Codere
authors: L A
authors: LA
authors: Wallace
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Baguley
authors: D J
authors: DJ
authors: Clutterbuck
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D020407:Internet; D059012:Lost to Follow-Up; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009819:Office Visits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012606:Scotland / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult