HIV and hepatitis blood tests start at hospitals

The blood testing is an opt-out scheme in Wolverhampton and Walsall, NHS bosses said

Two hospitals have begun offering opt-out blood tests for HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C in the hope it will lead to earlier diagnoses and save lives.

They will be an option for anyone over the age of 18 who is already having their blood taken in the emergency departments at Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital or Walsall Manor Hospital.

The NHS trust running the hospitals said thousands of people in England were thought to be living with undiagnosed blood–borne viruses.

The testing offered is part of a national NHS initiative in areas where there are higher rates of the infections.

Patients can choose to opt out if they do not wish to be tested.

The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust said their scheme, which started on Monday, had been a success in other areas such as London, Brighton, Manchester and Blackpool.

There was confidence the scheme would make a difference locally after the trials elsewhere, Dr Radhika McCathie said.

"Data collected after 12 months confirmed it to be a huge success, enabling millions of people to be tested easily and identifying more than 5,100 people with a newly diagnosed [blood-borne viruses]," she added.