hIV Care
HIV Care
Our Services
Finding out you have HIV can be a life changing experience. If you have been recently diagnosed it may be a difficult time.
However it is worth knowing that with effective treatments, the majority of people diagnosed with HIV in the UK now have a very good prognosis and normal life expectancy.
There are five HIV clinics within the umbrella of The Northern Contraception, Sexual Health and HIV Service which are at the following locations:
- Choices Centre, Stockport
- The Hathersage Centre
- North Manchester Sexual Health Clinic (GUM) at North Manchester General Hospital
- The Orange room
- Withington Clinic
We offer a sexual health service at the Salford Lance Burn clinic, but the HIV care at this location is provided by the Bolton SHINE service https://www.boltonft.nhs.uk/services/sexual-reproductive-health/
Our Services
Finding out you have HIV can be a life changing experience. If you have been recently diagnosed it may be a difficult time. However it is
worth knowing that with effective treatments, the majority of people diagnosed with HIV in the UK now have a very good prognosis and
normal life expectancy.
There are Six HIV clinics within the umbrella of The Northern Contraception, Sexual Health and HIV Service which are at the following locations:
- Choices Centre, Stockport
- The Hathersage Centre
- North Manchester Sexual Health Clinic (GUM) at North Manchester General Hospital
- The Orange room
- Withington Clinic
- Salford Sexual Health Clinic
We offer a sexual health service at the Salford Lance Burn clinic, but the HIV care at this location is provided by the Bolton SHINE service https://www.boltonft.nhs.uk/services/sexual-reproductive-health/
Symptoms
We routinely offer asymptomatic sexual health screens when you attend for bloods or clinical review.
If you have symptoms or think you may have an infection then please see the Personal Health Record to book an appointment online.
There are also contraceptive appointments available within the Northern service. Please see check your local clinic for advice.
We also offer annual cervical cytology (smear tests) to all eligible women and transgender men who access our HIV service.
If you have been newly diagnosed with HIV or have recently started or changed medication then please contact the clinic where you receive your care. For general health concerns please contact your GP/local walk in centre or dial 111.
If you think you need urgent medical help then please attend your nearest A&E or call 999
Treatments
Modern HIV treatments are really effective at keeping you well. It is important you take them every day to control the virus (having an undetectable viral load).
People on treatment with an undetectable virus load for 6 months or more, cannot pass their virus to others. This is referred to as U=U
If you realise you are running out of medication and do not have enough until your next appointment, please contact your clinic as soon as possible and allow plenty of time for a prescription to be prepared.
Not all clinics are near to a hospital pharmacy so may need to order medication or ask you to travel to another clinic.
Informing Your Partner
If you have just been diagnosed with HIV you will be thinking about whether to tell your partner, whether they are long-term or casual.
Your partner will need to have an HIV test. If you have had unprotected sex recently, your partner may need to wait for a few weeks before testing to make sure the result is accurate.
You may be in a long-term or casual relationship or you might just have sex with someone once. In each of these situations the decisions you make about telling a partner will be different.
Some patients may choose to inform their partners themselves.
We can support you in contacting your partner(s) and informing them that they may be at risk of HIV too, without naming you.
You need to leave your partners name, age, and contact details (preferably mobile number) with the health advisors.
HIV Inpatient Care Confidentiality
We take your right to confidentiality very seriously. However, in order to ensure that you are properly cared for, where necessary we will share information about your treatment with other staff within Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to maintain patient confidentiality and we will treat your medical records accordingly. Failure of NHS staff to protect patients’ confidentiality is considered a serious issue and can lead to dismissal.
Informing Your Partner
If you have just been diagnosed with HIV you will be thinking about whether to tell your partner, whether they are long-term or casual.
Your partner will need to have an HIV test. If you have had unprotected sex recently, your partner may need to wait for a few weeks before testing to make sure the result is accurate.
You may be in a long-term or casual relationship or you might just have sex with someone once. In each of these situations the decisions you make about telling a partner will be different.
Some patients may choose to inform their partners themselves.
We can support you in contacting your partner(s) and informing them that they may be at risk of HIV too, without naming you. You need to leave your partner(s) name, age, and contact details (preferably mobile number) with the health advisors.
HIV Inpatient Care Confidentiality
We take your right to confidentiality very seriously. However, in order to ensure that you are properly cared for, where necessary we will share information about your treatment with other staff within Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to maintain patient confidentiality and we will treat your medical records accordingly. Failure of NHS staff to protect patients’ confidentiality is considered a serious issue and can lead to dismissal.
Test Yourself
If you would like an HIV test, we offer home testing kits which are available through our PHR
If this is your first time using PHR, you will need to register. Please note, you can only register for yourself with your own personal email address and UK mobile phone number.
Please do not use shared email addresses and make sure no one else has access to your phone.
