Baseline Survey on Physician Practice and Attitude in Recommending Partner HIV Testing

OBJECTIVES: We studied physician partner testing (PT) practice and obstacles against PT in the clinical settings in Japan. METHODS: Subjects were 513 physicians identified at HIV/AIDS sentinel hospitals. The questionnaire included demographics, current practices, factors for facilitating PT, experience in finding new HIV cases through PT, and information channels for PT. RESULTS: Of physicians interviewed, 66% did PT for all HIV cases, with 37% finding 185 new HIV cases through PT. Physicians reported too little time for PT, together with a lack of legal authorization and standardized educational material. Of those interviewed, 78% did PT orally. CONCLUSIONS: Detecting new HIV cases showed the effectiveness of PT in identifying and diagnosing HIV cases as early as possible in Japan. To expand PT legal authorization, standardized practices, and educational material all require development.