Services for people with HIV

This chapter provides an overview of how health and social services are provided in the United Kingdom, with a particular focus on the services which people living with HIV might need. A range of services are provided by the NHS, local authorities, charities and voluntary sector organisations, but this can sometimes become confusing both for professionals and for people with HIV.

This section explains the main ways in which services are organised – who pays for them, who provides them, how an individual can gain access to a service and how users can influence the way in which services are provided. When services are organised differently in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, this is mentioned.

The chapter also aims to introduce some of the jargon that you may come across.

To find out what services are available locally, please refer to NAM’s directory HIV services in the UK or www.aidsmap.com.

Acknowledgements

Written by: Robert James and Roger Pebody

With thanks to: Ruth Goldsmith (Drugscope), Roy Kilpatrick (HIV Scotland), Rachael Pizzey (Turning Point), Fizza Qureshi (Doctors of the World UK), Elliot Elam (Addaction), Angelina Namiba (Positively Women), Catherine Murphy (Terrence Higgins Trust), Peter Weatherburn (Sigma Research), John McCord (University of Ulster), Adam Hundt (Pierce Glynn), Pat Knowles (Belfast Health & Social Care Trust), Karina Easdown (Southend Borough Council), Caroline Munro (Hampshire County Council), Karen Mills (University of Hertfordshire)

This content was checked for accuracy at the time it was written. It may have been superseded by more recent developments. NAM recommends checking whether this is the most current information when making decisions that may affect your health.