Sexual Health Improvement programme (SHIP) HIT 2023-24

Generating evidence to improve treatment and services

HIV testing in Emergency Departments

The HIT has lobbied locally for HIV testing in Emergency Departments to diagnose more cases of HIV and help save more lives. In November 2023 this came a step closer when the Department of Health and Social Care announced the expansion of the testing programme into more areas with high HIV prevalence, including Bristol. Evidence for this decision came from a co-written by SHIP HIT co-director Professor Jeremy Horwood. This found that the NHS England Emergency Opt-Out testing Programme for blood-borne viruses has helped to diagnose thousands of people with serious infections.

The HIT is now supporting the steering group responsible for implementing testing across Bristol’s acute NHS trusts and Jeremy will be involved in evaluating the national rollout.

Vending machines

Ongoing monitoring of the use and success of vending machines to access STI tests will be incorporated in and reported to Fast Track Cities ‘Increasing Testing’ workstream, which the SHIP HIT coordinates. The findings were reported to the British Association of Sexual Health & HIV (BASHH) in June 2023.

PReP in pharmacies

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PReP) is a drug taken by HIV-negative people to protect them from getting HIV. The HIT was involved in a study to assess the feasibility of pharmacies dispensing PReP to increase its use by people who may be at increased risk of infection.

Involving people with lived experience

Co-producing new sexual health services pathway

The HIT supported a co-production project led by Dr Jane Meyrick from UWE Bristol. This collaborative project with The Bridge SARC and the Green House worked with child sexual abuse survivors to improve their experiences of sexual health services. The project won a British Medical Association (BMA) Award in 2023.

Recognising the value of public contributors in research

The Common Ambition Bristol programme aims to increase HIV testing in Bristol’s African and Caribbean heritage communities. This year, Common Ambition Bristol was shortlisted for two major awards: a Patient Experience Network National Award and a Bristol Social Impact award.

The HIT was pleased to welcome public contributor Marsha Doran to its leadership team following her work with the Common Ambition Bristol programme.

Providing training and education

Hearts and Minds

Hearts and Minds, a collaborative training resource using creative engagement to reduce HIV stigma in healthcare staff, continues to be rolled out in several areas.  Recently it has been added to NHS Futures, a national platform for sharing professional knowledge.

Funding enabled in 2023-24

SHIP HIT helped secure £910,660 in 2023-24 for projects to generate research evidence, improve outcomes and address health inequalities.