Central and North London‘s (CNWL) Sexual Health Services have become the first in the country to offer PrEP medication, which is taken by people who don’t have HIV to stop them contracting the virus, online.
Existing patients who meet certain clinical guidelines and are residents in the boroughs of Camden, Islington, Haringey and Barnet can now apply for a repeat prescription of PrEP medication using an online form, and choose to have the PrEP posted or click and collect in clinic.
Just recently, a landmark new study into PrEP confirmed PrEP is highly effective at preventing HIV and should be used more widely by eligible groups.
Dr John Saunders, Deputy Head of Programme Delivery and Service Improvement for STI and HIV Division, from the UK Health Security Agency, and an Honorary Consultant at CNWL, said: “Now we know how effective PrEP is in real-world settings, substantially reducing the chance of acquiring HIV. It’s vital that all those who can benefit from PrEP can access it.
“Currently, we know that many people who can benefit from PrEP are not aware the medication exists or where to access it. To address this, CNWL’s North Central London PrEP Programme has been working to increase awareness and uptake among groups who can most benefit from PrEP, including young gay and bi men, gay and bi men of colour, and Black African heterosexuals.
“One goal of the new Online PrEP Service is to free up in-clinic appointments for new patients who want to start PrEP, allowing the services to see more patients and ensuring more people can benefit from this game-changing HIV prevention tool.”
In September, CNWL’s PrEP Programme won a HSJ Patient Safety Award and in December received a letter of congratulations from the Mayor of London’s office.
Mayor Sadiq Khan also reiterated his longstanding support for PrEP initiatives, noting, “the essential role that increasing PrEP access will play in bringing us down to zero new HIV infections”.
He further commended CNWL, “for considering those populations that have not yet seen good take-up of this potentially life-saving intervention”.
Dr Shalini Andrews, Clinical Lead for CNWL’s Sexual Health Services, added: “Our new Online PrEP Service demonstrates our commitment to improve access to PrEP for Londoners. This convenient way to access PrEP without the need to attend a clinic will empower people to stay on PrEP, as we stride towards elimination of HIV transmission.”
