Responsibility for notification #
A medical practitioner or nurse practitioner who forms the opinion that a patient of the practitioner has, or may have, HIV or an HIV-related condition must notify the chief health officer that the patient from whom the sample was taken has, or may have, a notifiable infectious disease or notifiable infectious disease-related condition (Public Health Act 2016 (WA) s 94). The responsible pathologist of that pathology laboratory must also notify the chief health officer (Public Health Act 2016 (WA) s 94(3)).
Notification should occur as soon as practicable, and not more than 72 hours after the opinion is formed that patient has, or may have, HIV.
Mode of notification #
Notifications are required to be made by use of an approved form that is specific to HIV notification. Those making a notification are to provide information on the form to the extent that the notifier has the information (Public Health Act 2016 (WA) s 94(5)).
At present, regs 6(4) and 6(5) of the Public Health Regulations 2017 (WA) define the information required for a notification as that required by the HIV infection notification form. This form includes fields for a patient’s telephone number and email address.
However, reg 5 of the Public Health Regulations 2017 (WA) states that notification of a HIV diagnosis need not include the telephone number or email address of the patient (nor that of the patient’s medical practitioner or nurse practitioner). The prescribed HIV infection notification form, therefore, includes fields, which are defined by the regulations as ‘not required’ for a notification relating to HIV, namely, the telephone number and email address of the patient. The HIV-specific notification form can be found here: HIV infection notification form.
