P103 HIV/STI testing among men who have sex with men in the Netherlands: attitudes towards home-sampling testing during the Covid-19 pandemic

Goense, H.; Evers, Y.; Hoebe, C.; Dukers-Muijrers, N.

BackgroundThe Covid-19 pandemic may have affected access to and uptake of HIV/STI testing among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the Netherlands and underpin the importance of remote sexual health care. Remote sexual health care, including home HIV/STI testing and remote consultation is increasingly appreciated as a necessary extension to regular care, to be able to reach out to MSM. While care providers recognize this need, evidence regarding attitudes among MSM towards using remote care is limited. Here, we present STI/HIV testing behaviors, attitudes and preferences, towards home-sampling during the Covid-19 pandemic, in MSM who (pre-pandemic) attended location-based STI clinic care.MethodsStarting in November 2020, 417 MSM who attended one of several Dutch STI clinics before the Covid-19 pandemic were invited to participate in an online survey, Data collection is on-going. Descriptive statistics regarding testing for HIV/STI testing, of the first 148 participants (35.5%) are presented. Attitude towards home-sampling testing is shown on a scale from negative (0) to positive (100).ResultsOf participants (mean age 48) in the past 6 months, 66.4% (97/146) tested for STI and 61.6% (90/146) tested for HIV. A home-sampling test for STI was used by 2.1% and 1.1% performed a home-sampling test for HIV. Participants reported that 1.5% of their male sex partners used home-sampling testing for HIV. Participants were positive towards home-sampling testing (mean=72.0, SD=33.6). When testing for HIV in the future 48.4% (60/124) would consider home-sampling testing. Most of the participants (56.8%) prefer remote consultations combined with a consultation at the STI clinic.ConclusionsAlthough home-sampling STI/HIV testing is rarely used by STI clinic visiting MSM, results show that MSM can be positive towards home-sampling testing for STI and HIV. Home-sampling testing and remote consultations might be solutions to extend sexual healthcare to continue reaching MSM.