MS, Cabinet Secretary for
Health and Social Care: At the start of Wales HIV Testing Week
and as we look towards World AIDS Day next month, I am providing
Members with an update about HIV in Wales and our progress in
delivering the HIV Action Plan.
Thanks to the hard work of our NHS, volunteers and campaigners,
the latest data on trends in the prevention,
diagnosis and treatment of HIV in
Wales show Wales is making encouraging
progress towards our goal of zero new transmissions of HIV by
2030:
- Screening levels continue to increase and in 2023 they
surpassed the numbers seen in 2019 before the pandemic.
This is the result of services working together to provide
wider access to testing, including through our free and
confidential online testing
service, which supports testing outside the
clinic setting and also allows clinical staff to focus on
treatment.
- Uptake of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a medicine
which when taken as prescribed reduces the risk of contracting
HIV through sex by 99%, is increasing year-on-year and is at its
highest level since it was introduced in Wales in 2017.
- Rates of treatment have been maintained and treatment
continues to be highly effective – 97% of people on treatment
have an undetectable viral load, which means the infection has
been reduced to such low levels it cannot be passed to others.
While all this is very encouraging, we know there are still
challenges which we need to address, including having better data
to monitor trends, assess the success of interventions and plan
service provision.
Although the use of PrEP continues to grow, we can make access
even easier. PrEP is predominantly used by gay, bisexual and
other men who have sex with men but much less so by those in
other at-risk groups. Making improvements to access will
help address this.
We continue to see people being diagnosed with HIV at a late
stage and there is more to be done to ensure people with HIV are
living well, including ensuring they do not experience negative
attitudes, beliefs and behaviours directed towards them.
Our HIV Action Plan contains a number of actions to help address
these challenges:
- The Welsh Government, health boards, local authorities and
other partners continue to work closely with the HIV voluntary
and community sector. Fast Track Cymru is
well established and is supporting the delivery of our aspiration
to be a Fast Track nation. We now have four health board areas
signed up to the Paris Declaration,
with the remaining three health board areas (Cwm Taf Morgannwg,
Hywel Dda and Powys) on course to sign by the end of the
current financial year.
- A business case for an all-Wales sexual health case
management system is being developed and we are strengthening
data on the quality of life and healthcare needs of people living
with HIV by introducing an annual wellbeing survey in 2025.
- Earlier this year, health boards provided their first annual
return evidencing their care pathways. Health boards will provide
annual updates on progress in ensuring they are equipped with the
necessary resources, staffing and pathways to fully implement the
British HIV Association (BHIVA) Standards of Care.
- The Terrence Higgins Trust has
agreed funding for an online peer support service dedicated to
Wales. In addition, Education Programmes for
Patients Cymru will soon be launching a six-week pilot
programme to help develop an online HIV self-management
programme. This is open to people living with HIV and those
supporting someone living with HIV. Further work is underway to
agree sustainable funding for peer support networks both at
regional and national levels, incorporating in-community,
in-clinic and online methods.
- A model providing more convenient access to PrEP in the
community will be piloted and an awareness-raising campaign will
run in the spring so all those at risk know about PrEP and how to
access it.
- Health board late diagnosis cohort review meetings take place
every six months so clinicians can identify missed opportunities
and implement improvements.
- Zero tolerance to stigma is woven throughout the action plan.
An initial awareness campaign has been run. A
short animation for health care professionals
and for the public
have been produced. An overarching guide will also be
produced for teachers to help schools consider and teach
developmentally-appropriate learning about HIV, PrEP and
stigma.
I will continue to keep Members updated about progress towards
our goal of zero new transmissions of HIV in Wales by 2030 and
our zero-tolerance approach.
I would like to reiterate my sincere thanks to our NHS,
volunteers and campaigners, who are all pivotal in delivering
these commitments.
