HIV– what you need to know - NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

HAI0316_NHS HIV leaflet:Layout 1 25/6/09 10:39 Page 1 

HIV – 

what you 

need to know 

A GUIDE TO FREE SERVICES AND RESOURCES

HAI0316_NHS HIV leaflet:Layout 1 25/6/09 10:39 Page 2


You cannot tell by looking at 

someone if they have HIV. 

Having HIV does not mean that 

a person has done something 

wrong. HIV is a medical 

condition that is found in every 

country in the world. It can affect 

anyone, regardless of their age, 

gender, sexuality, relationship 

status, ethnicity or religion. 

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HIV KEY FACTS 

– HIV is a treatable infection. There is no cure, but 

medicines are available which help people with 

HIV to keep well and live healthier lives. 

– Having an HIV test is the only way to know if you 

have HIV or not. Many people do not have any 

symptoms for many years and are not aware 

that they are living with HIV. 

– Someone who has HIV but does not get treatment, 

will over time, develop a number of serious illnesses 

and become very unwell. The sooner a person is 

tested for HIV the better. 

– Everyone in Scotland including refugees and asylum 

seekers can access free HIV testing, treatment and 

care via the National Health Service (NHS). 

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HOW CAN A PERSON GET HIV? 

– HIV is an infection found in blood, breast milk, 

semen and vaginal fluid. You can only get HIV 

from someone who already has the virus, 

but only if the virus gets into your bloodstream. 

HIV CAN GET INTO YOUR BLOODSTREAM 

IN THE FOLLOWING WAYS: 

– Direct blood to blood contact. 

– Through having unprotected sex. 

– From an infected mother to her child, 

at delivery or from breastfeeding. 

YOU CANNOT GET HIV FROM: 

– Sharing food with someone who has HIV. 

– Sharing cooking or eating utensils with someone 

who has HIV. 

– Kissing someone with HIV. 

– Shaking hands or hugging someone with HIV. 

– Using the same toilet as someone who has HIV.


A PERSON LIVING WITH HIV COULD HAVE: 

– Contracted HIV from having sexual intercourse 

without a condom. 

– Been infected with HIV from their mother during 

delivery or during breastfeeding. This is called 

Mother to Child transmission. 

– Been given infected blood (or blood products) during 

a blood transfusion. In the UK blood has been screened 

since 1984 and is therefore safe. 

– Been infected with HIV because a contaminated needle 

and syringe was used. This could be from sharing 

injecting equipment to take drugs, or in a hospital 

or clinic in a country that did not have good hygiene 

processes and where equipment was used on more 

than one person. 

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WHO SHOULD HAVE AN HIV TEST? 

– If you have never tested for HIV you should consider a test. 

– If you have tested before, but in the last six months you 

have had unprotected sex, shared injecting equipment or 

been in hospital in a country where equipment was not 

sterile or was used on more than one person, you should 

consider a test. 

– All pregnant women in Scotland are offered an HIV test as 

part of their routine antenatal care. It is important for an 

expectant mother to have this test because if she has HIV 

there are a number of treatments that can be offered to 

greatly reduce the risk of the baby becoming infected. 

Being HIV positive does not mean that you will not be 

able to have children. There are medical procedures that 

can enable HIV positive people to have a child safely, but it 

is important to know if you have HIV, so that you or your 

partner and the baby are not put at risk of getting HIV. 

– Because HIV can be passed on through sexual intercourse, 

anyone thinking about having sex without a condom, even 

if they are in a relationship, including marriage and civil 

partnerships, should consider testing before doing so. 

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WHAT DOES AN HIV TEST INVOLVE? 

– An HIV test involves a trained health professional taking 

a small amount of blood from you, usually from your 

arm. If you get infected with HIV, your body reacts to the 

infection and produces ‘antibodies’. The test looks to see 

if you have these HIV antibodies in your blood. If you do 

have HIV antibodies this means you have HIV and this is 

usually called being HIV positive. 

– After you have been exposed to HIV it can take up to 

12 weeks for your body to develop HIV antibodies and 

this is called the ‘window period’. This means that if you 

were infected shortly before you have a test, it would 

not show up. In this case a repeat test will need to 

be arranged. 

– Results can take up to 2 weeks depending on where 

you have your test done. 

– HIV testing is confidential. A Health Professional will not 

tell anyone other than those involved in your care that 

you have had a test. They will also not tell anyone the 

results of that test without your permission or unless 

there were special circumstances. If a doctor needed to 

tell someone else, they would discuss this with you first. 

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WHERE CAN I GET A TEST? 

– There are a number of places where you can get 

an HIV test. More information is available about 

these services at the end of this leaflet. 

WHAT IF I AM HIV POSITIVE? 

– If your test shows that you have HIV you will be referred 

to a specialist for further advice, support and treatment. 

All of this is free. 

– Having HIV may be a big shock but remember it is a 

medical condition and there are treatments that can 

help you stay healthy and well. 

– Being HIV positive does not mean that you can’t get 

married or have a sexual partner. However, if you do test 

positive it is important to discuss your HIV status with 

future and current sexual partners. Talking to partners is 

important so that they can make decisions about whether 

they want to be tested. Talking about HIV with current or 

future partners also means that you can make informed 

decisions about reducing any risks, for example using 

condoms.


– There have been some cases in the UK where people 

have been prosecuted for passing on HIV to sexual 

partners. This has generally happened when the person 

with HIV has not told the person they were having sex 

with that they had HIV and the virus has been passed on. 

Telling partners can be a difficult thing to do, but there are 

professionals, like sexual health advisers, who can offer 

advice and guidance on this. Using condoms with partners, 

even those who are also HIV positive is recommended, 

as it will help protect you against other STIs. 

– Having HIV will not affect your immigration status or 

asylum claim. You will not be refused asylum because 

you are HIV positive, but having HIV does not guarantee 

refugee status or right to remain either. 

– Having HIV does not mean you will be unable to get life 

insurance or a mortgage; there are companies that will 

offer mortgages and life insurance to people who are 

HIV positive, but there might be less choice and it could 

be more expensive. 

– In the UK there are laws protecting people living with 

HIV from discrimination. If you think you have been 

discriminated against because of your HIV status, 

you should seek advice from one of the HIV support 

organisations listed in this booklet. 

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DO I NEED TO DO ANYTHING IF I AM HIV NEGATIVE? 

– If you test negative then you can take steps to make 

sure you stay that way. Having one negative test does 

not mean that you will always test negative. If you have 

been at risk any time after a negative test you should 

think about testing again. 

– An HIV test can only tell you about your HIV status. 

It cannot tell you if your current or previous partners 

are infected. Other people can only find out if they go 

for a test themselves. 

THINGS TO REMEMBER 

– The earlier a person is tested, the better. They can 

make important decisions about their health and 

they will have a better chance of living a healthy life. 

– HIV is a medical condition that can affect anyone. 

– HIV testing is free. 

– There is free medication available to treat HIV. 

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CONTACTS 

Counselling Clinic: 0141 211 1089 

Brownlee Centre, Gartnavel General Hospital 

1055 Great Western Road, Glasgow G12 0YN 

This service offers testing and treatment for Hepatitis and 

HIV. You need to make an appointment before attending 

the service. 

SANDYFORD SERVICES 

At Sandyford you can access HIV testing as well as support 

for a number of sexual, emotional and reproductive health 

issues. You can either make an appointment by phoning 

or visiting the service or there are times of the day when 

you can drop in (go without an appointment) and wait to 

be seen. You must arrive before the end of the drop in 

session in order to be seen that day. Contact individual 

services to find out about opening times or go to: 

www.sandyford.org 

Sandyford: 0141 211 8130 

2-6 Sandyford Place, Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow G3 7NB 

Sandyford East: 0141 232 7413 

Parkhead Health Centre, 101 Salamanca Street, 

Glasgow G31 5BA


Sandyford North: 0141 531 6703 

Springburn Health Centre, 200 Springburn Way, 

Glasgow G21 1TR 

Sandyford South East: 0141 531 8349 

Govanhill Health Centre, Community Wing 

233 Calder Street, Glasgow G42 7DR 

Sandyford South West: 0141 531 6807 

Pollok Health Centre, 21 Cowglen Road, Glasgow G53 3EQ 

Sandyford East Renfrewshire: 0141 314 0885 

Barrhead Health Centre, 201 Main Street, Barrhead G78 1SA 

Sandyford Renfrewshire: 0141 314 0726 

The Russell Institute, Causeyside Street, Paisley PA1 1UR 

Sandyford Inverclyde: 01475 504 978 

Block 1 and 2, Residential Complex, Inverclyde Royal Hospital, 

Larkfield Road, Greenock PA16 0XN 

Sandyford West Dunbartonshire: 01389 818 511 

Ground Floor, Old Maternity Block, Vale of Leven Hospital, 

North Main Street, Alexandria G83 0VA 

C-card Service: 0141 211 8130 

The C-Card service provides a range of free condoms from 

a variety of locations across the health board area. 

www.yourccard.org.uk 

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HIV SUPPORT SERVICES 

African Support Project: 07956 620 461or 07944 840 666 

This service is for Africans living with HIV within Greater 

Glasgow and Clyde. Provides peer and emotional support, 

information, advocacy and volunteering opportunities. 

HIV Peer Support Project: 0141 211 1692 

Support Service for all people living with HIV within 

Greater Glasgow and Clyde. 

Gay Men’s Health: 0141 552 0112 

Fifth Floor, 48 Albion Street, Glasgow G1 1LH 

Service for gay men including support groups and 

counselling for those living with HIV. 

www.gmh.org.uk 

Terrence Higgins Trust (Scotland): 0141 332 3838 

134 Douglas Street, Glasgow G2 4HF 

Confidential helpline: 0845 12 21 200 

Services for people living with HIV include welfare 

rights and benefits advice, one to one practical and 

emotional support and group work. 

www.tht.org.uk 

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Public Education Resource Library: 0141 201 4915 

www.nhsggc.org.uk 

Version 1: June 2009, review date: 2011

HIV– what you need to know - NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

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