Human immunodeficiency virus self-testing in India: Time to move from evidence to implementation

Abstract

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has been regarded as a global public health concern. In the global mission to minimize the existing gap on the diagnostic front, a number of strategies to promote HIV testing have been encouraged in heterogeneous settings. Detection of HIV infection using self-testing kits has emerged as an important approach to ascertain the identification of new cases and for connecting the affected people with the health-care delivery system. It is quite an alarming fact that despite HIV is a major public health problem in India, we to date have no policy on the promotion of self-testing. The findings of a recently released report in India revealed that self-testing was found to be acceptable to vulnerable population groups and their partners. To conclude, acknowledging the merits that have been linked with self-testing and considering the encouraging results obtained in Indian settings, it is the need of the hour that policymakers draft the much-awaited policy on the promotion of HIV self-testing in the nation and promote it.