Do not use if you require confidentiality as they automatically share your results and details with your local hospital who will phone you if any test is positive. This was done despite my having requested in advance of being tested that they wouldn't share locally. I had made an appointment with a clinic in a nearby city but received a call from the hospital near me. I live in a rural area.
Tuesday 5th November 2019 is honestly a day I’ll never forget. It was time for my annual sexual health check up so I saw this company advertised by my local authority and ordered my self sampling pack which arrived the very next day. I did my swabs, pricked my finger and waited for my negative results to be texted to me. I’m very low risk, always have protected sex and have had the same sexual partner for 8yrs. Two days later I get a message from SH:24 asking if they could call me about my results. A little confused I waited for the call. About 5mins later I’m standing outside work and listening to a man say that my blood had come back ‘reactive’ to HIV. I remember my heart beating so loudly and the floor felt like it was coming up to hit me in my face, I nearly passed out. The man I spoke to was very quick in saying that it’s not a positive results and I need further tests. I immediately made my excuses, left work and went straight to my local clinic. During that time SH:24 had sent me a text to confirm my blood was reactive to HIV, I showed this to the clinic receptionist and she gave me forms to complete. I sat down and waited almost 2hrs. My name was finally called and I really can’t remember much, I remember showing the doctor the text message and him asking my sexual history and if I’d had any symptoms. I remember him seeming quite confused by it all but reassuring me these things can happen and with my history he’s sure it will be a false reactive result. He took my blood and promised me it would be sent to the lab by priority and he’d get back to me in about a week. I don’t remember my journey home, I remember that night was the longest night of my life. I spoke with my partner about it and he was absolutely not worried. His words were ‘there’s just no way’ I couldn’t make it into work the next day and basically sat on my sofa a quivering mess. The worse thing I did was google this company and they basically tell you that if they’ve got a reactive result then you’re HIV positive because there statistics are so low in getting a false positive. I called a HIV helpline and was basically told that unless there was some mislabelling at the lab it’s more certain than not that I’m HIV positive. All very devastating stuff. I didn’t fit any of the criteria of why I might of had a false positive, no flu jabs or illnesses I knew of. As the day went on I was quite prepared to be HIV positive knowing it’s not the death sentence it used to be, but how I was going to get through the week of waiting for my results I didn’t know. At 15:37 that day I get a call on private number which I don’t usually answer, it’s the doctor from the clinic verified my name and DOB and held my breath. He said, ‘your blood results have come back NEGATIVE for HIV. I just burst into tears, I don’t remember getting off the phone although I do remember thanking him 100 times. I know these things can happen but this was truly a humbling experience for me. If anyone ever reads this, don’t lose hope, I know the dark place your probably in right now. And for the love of God please don’t google! Get your bloods done and know your status! SH:24 didn’t offer me any after care or counselling and I wonder how they got it so wrong. To pass on news like that, pop it in a text and peace be with you just isn’t best practice in my opinion.
