"They are both true diamonds"

As a gay man I have been using the Sexual Health Fife services ever since I reached sexual maturity. I would attend at least once every 3 months for a routine check-up and especially when the PrEP clinic first began. I was lucky enough to be one of the first to get access to it in Fife! Over the years I began to get to know the staff within the clinic more. Their hard work and efforts where always there to be seen yet always greeted with a smile and anything to help attitude - From Reception to the Nurses!

Three weeks to a routine check up I became very unwell and had to attend out of hours at A&E and blood tests were taken however all my results were okay. A week later I continued to deteriorate and ended up having blood taken at the Drs surgery and at this point I had requested a HIV Blood test as my symptoms were very close to that of HIV and my risk had been high as I had unprotected sex with someone I trusted, however I had to stop taking PReP temporarily as I had to take medication that would interact with it. When I contacted the DRs a few days later I was told my results were okay however I still was not very well.

A week later was my regular PReP Appointment where I usually see Alison or Moira and as soon as Alison called me into the room from the waiting room I explained what had happened and that I was improving albeit slowly however my mouth was covered in thrush to the point it was down my oesophagus. Alison did all my routine tests and tried her best to reassure me that it my not be HIV and she would keep an eye out for my results coming and let me know as soon as she knew due to the anxiety I had over the situation and that I suffer from mental health issues at the best of times.

Few days later I got the call from Alison to tell me that my results came back as indeterminant and that I needed to come into the hospital as quickly as possible to get bloods taken to retest. Understandably I was in distress and by this point crippled with anxiety waiting for my results and given the stigma surrounding HIV I was completely alone in absorbing and dealing with what was unfolding infront of me. Alison knew this and gave me her desk phone number to call if I had any questions while waiting for my results and my goodness that was a lifeline for me as the couple days leading up to getting my results were horrendous. I spent hours on the phone to Alison going over every possibly hoping that this was a mistake although deep down I knew it was going to be positive and it was.

I attended the hospital and sat down with both Alison and Moira while I absorbed the news that it was indeed positive. They shared all the relevant information that I needed and how my treatment would be handled, still within Sexual Health Fife under Karen and her team as well as the Pharmacists, Dietitian, Mental Health Support and Specialist. They both made sure that I was okay and never once made me feel guilty or judged. The time these two ladies dedicated to me over the course of my diagnosis and their efforts to help me will never be forgotten.

Alison and Moira are both true diamonds and are not only a credit to Sexual Health Fife but to the NHS. No matter the pressure they were under with other people they made it work and did more than their best to go out the way and help me and for that I cannot thank you both enough