You can look fine for many years when you first have HIV in your body. The only way to tell if you have HIV is by having the HIV test.
Your right to counselling
You should go to a clinic when you are thinking about having an HIV test.
The health worker will explain the test to you, and give you the information that will help you decide whether or not to have the test.
This is called pre-test counselling. It is your right to have pre-test counselling.
Should you decide to test for HIV, the health worker will take a sample of your blood. Most clinics can give you the results of the test within ten minutes. The HIV test is free at government clinics.
Click on the signpost to learn more about HIV, how it is spread, how you can protect yourself and live a happy, healthy life.
After the test, the health worker will give you your results and explain what the results mean to you. This includes explaining to you what to do next if your results are HIV positive.
This is called post-test counselling, it is your right to get post-test counselling.
Your right to confidentiality
The results of your HIV test are confidential. This means that it is against the law for a health worker to tell anyone the results of your test without your permission.
