Where to get an HIV test in Scotland

As a health or social care worker, you may be the first person someone turns to with questions about HIV. You don’t need to be an expert- just knowing where to signpost someone for a test or advice can make a huge difference.

Here’s how to guide people to free, confidential HIV testing across Scotland:

NHS Sexual Health Clinics

All NHS health boards in Scotland offer free and confidential HIV testing through sexual health clinics.

• Tests are available to everyone, regardless of immigration status or GP registration
• Options include blood tests, rapid tests, or self-sampling kits (depending on location)
• Some clinics offer walk-in services, but most are appointment-based

Find your nearest clinic and the services they can offer at NHS Inform.

Community-based testing

Waverley Care and the Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) offer testing in non-clinical settings such as community centres and drop-in clinics.

These services may be especially useful to people who:

• Find it hard to access mainstream healthcare
• Prefer to receive support in a non-clinical setting

Waverley Care offers testing services in the Lothians, Glasgow and the surrounding areas. In Edinburgh, they also offer tailored testing and advice clinics for Trans and Non-Binary people and for Minority Ethnic communities.

THT provides community-based testing in some areas, as well as free self-testing kits throughout Scotland and the rest of the UK. More information can be found in our useful links section.

When to test after possible HIV exposure:

• Immediately (baseline test): It’s important to test and get advice as soon as possible after potential exposure. In your workplace, your manager and your Occupational Therapy team will be able to advise you. This gives a baseline HIV status and can help guide any immediate treatment, like PEP
• At 4 weeks: Most modern HIV tests can detect HIV at this stage, but not always. A negative result is reassuring, but because of the window period, it may still be too early to rule out infection
• At 8 to 12 weeks: A final follow-up test provides a conclusive result, depending on the type of test used

Types of HIV tests – blood vs mouth swab:

• Blood tests (including finger-prick and lab-based) are the most sensitive and can detect HIV earlier than other methods
• Mouth swab tests (saliva-based) are quick and easy to use but may take longer to detect HIV after exposure
• If someone is testing soon after a possible exposure, a blood test is usually recommended for the most accurate result