Hospitals in Action >> Case Examples

HOWARD UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL, Washington, D.C.
Routine HIV Screening for All Patients
                       
What is it?
Beginning October 2006, Howard University Hospital became the first hospital in the nation to offer routine HIV testing in all departments. Patients in all areas of the hospital are offered the option of testing for HIV with an oral swab screening that delivers results in 20 minutes with 99.8 percent accuracy. Patients whose screenings are positive are referred to the hospital's Center for Infectious Disease Management and Research for secondary testing and follow-up care.
 
Who is it for?
All patients between the ages of 14 and 84.

Why do they do it?
Of the nearly one million Americans living with HIV, some 40 percent get sick before they find out they are infected, as reported by the New England Journal of Medicine. Recent data also shows that the HIV prevalence rate in the District of Columbia is more than twice the national average. In an effort to address these spiking infection rates, Howard University Hospital established routine, voluntary HIV testing in all clinical departments. This policy also responds to the CDC's recent recommendation that HIV testing become part of routine medical care for all individuals.

Contact: Stacie B. (Royster) Miller
Media Relations Manager
Telephone: 202-238-2332
Email: sroyster@howard.edu