New Evidence Available
Updated Recommendation
A new evidence synthesis was published:2020, Consolidated guidelines on HIV testing services, 2019
View latest version (2020)Bibliographic Info
GuidelineGuidelines on HIV self-testing and partner notification: supplement to consolidated guidelines on HIV testing services
Year of Publication2016
Issuing InstitutionWHO
Recommendation
Status
Retired
Recommended in favor
Strong
Certainty of evidence
Moderate
Voluntary assisted partner notification services should be offered as part of a comprehensive package of testing and care offered to people with HIV
Notes and Remarks
- 1)HIV partner notification is a voluntary process where trained health workers, including lay providers, ask people diagnosed with HIV about their sexual partners or drug injecting partners, and with the consent of the HIV-positive client, offer these partners voluntary HIV testing. Partner notification is provided using passive or assisted approaches.
- 2)Assisted partner notification services (such as provider, contract or dual referral) increase the uptake of HIV testing among partners of HIV-positive clients, and high proportions of HIV-positive people are diagnosed and linked to care and treatment.
- 3)Reports of social harm or other adverse events following voluntary HIV partner notification have been rare. Trained providers should offer partner notification services appropriately and safely. Associated counselling and support services, such as helplines and intimate partner violence screening tools, can also be utilized to reduce the potential risk of harm.
- 4)HIV-positive clients should be offered multiple options for assisted partner notification (such as contract referral, provider referral or dual referral), and the approach selected should be based on client preferences. Clients should also be given the opportunity to decline.
- 5)Partner notification services should always be voluntary. Mandatory or coercive approaches to partner notification are never justified. People should always be counselled about the benefits and risks so that they can make safe and informed choices.
- 6)Notification should only be delivered to partners of HIV-positive people, no one else. Criminal justice, law enforcement or other non-health-related service providers should not be involved in partner notification services, especially in instances where the behaviour of key population groups is criminalized.
- 7)Supportive policies are essential for effective and safe HIV partner notification programmes. Countries should review their laws and policies in order to consider how they could be more supportive of people with HIV, for example revising mandatory or coercive partner notification practices that may stigmatize, criminalize or discriminate against people from key population groups and people with HIV.