Kenyans try new world of HIV self-testing kits

• Truck drivers and prostitutes have taken to HIV self-testing like a duck to water, reveals recent studies.
• In the latest of two studies, a majority of truck drivers and turn-boys in Nakuru chose ‘selfies’ or self testing (self testing is when you perform an HIV test on yourself, in private, and get an immediate result) instead of being tested by a health worker.

In the second study, prostitutes in Kisumu were used in what has been described as “successful distribution of self-test to their clients and partners”. Studies justifying the introduction of self-test kits in Kenya show truck drivers, sex workers, pharmacists and couples are eager to take up the practice.