Work begins on developing the world’s first e-PrEP clinic for people with HIV in Scotland

Award-winning researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University have begun work on a £400,000 Scottish Government funded project to develop the world’s first national PrEP (HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis) online service.

The three-year study, led by Professor of Sexual Health and HIV Claudia Estcourt, will pilot an e-PrEP clinic providing online prescriptions, and HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) check-ups, with the hope of rolling it out across Scotland.

PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is antiretroviral medication taken to prevent those at highest risk from acquiring HIV, and there are approximately 6,000 people using PrEP in Scotland at any one time.

Professor Estcourt said: “This just shows the confidence that the Scottish Government has in the team at GCU to provide the groundwork for world-class online sexual healthcare delivery which ultimately will lead to HIV transmission elimination along with other strategies.

“The idea is that after the successful pilot study is that more investment will be needed to convert this into something that can be offered across Scotland.”

Experts working with Professor Estcourt on the e-PrEP clinic study are fellow researcher Dr Ross Kincaid, Dr Jo Gibbs from University College London, along with three experts from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s Sandyford Sexual Health Service Consultant Dr Ceilidh Grimshaw, Advance Nursing Practitioner Lesley Maxwell and Specialist Registrar Dr Lindsay Henderson.

Professor Estcourt is also co-leading, with Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health Sharon Hutchinson, a dedicated research programme entitled ‘Beyond BBV’, launched by Glasgow Caledonian in December 2022, with a £2.5 million 10-year investment, to support the Scottish Government's plans to become the first country in the world to both end HIV transmission and eliminate Hepatitis C as a major public health concern.

The ‘Beyond BBV’ programme also involves GCU Honorary Professors Rak Nandwani, a Non-Executive Director of Public Health Scotland, and Nicola Steedman, the Scottish Government’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Alison Rodger, an infectious disease academic from UCL with specific research and policy focus on HIV prevention, and Dr Becky Metcalfe, Clinical Director of Sandyford Sexual Health Services.

At the same time as the ‘Beyond BBV’ launch, the Scottish Government published its HIV Transmission Elimination Strategy, led by Professors Nandwani, Estcourt, Hutchinson and Steedman. The GCU team’s work will feature in the forthcoming Scottish Government Implementation Plan.

Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health Jenni Minto MSP visited the School of Health and Life Sciences’ Research Centre for Health (ReaCH) Blood Borne Virus (BBV) Prevention Team last year to hear about their work, including the e-PrEP clinic and the team’s work with Hepatitis C and reducing drug deaths.

The BBV team, led by Professors Hutchinson and Estcourt, won the prestigious Research Project of the Year Award at The Herald Higher Education Awards last year.

They are the forefront of international work to reduce the impact of HIV and other blood borne viruses. Their ground-breaking research into patterns of infection and how to prevent them is key to achieving the Scottish Government's ambitious target to end transmission of HIV in Scotland by 2030.