Table 1 Themes of nontargeted HIV screening

Theme: Identifies more new infections

Theme: Tests under suboptimal circumstances

Sub-theme: Leads to positive downstream effects of identifying new infections through increased testing

Sub-theme: Forces patients to be tested when not ready, or at inappropriate times

Sub-subtheme: Provides earlier access to medical care

Sub-theme: Increases “pychotrauma” and emotional distress of testing

Sub-subtheme: Provides earlier access to preventive services

Sub-theme: Increases potential for physical and psychological harm of those tested

Sub-subtheme: Reduces mortality and better health outcomes because of earlier diagnosis

Sub-theme: Disallows individualization of testing

Theme: Broadens the population, setting, and scope of testing, making testing more widely available

Sub-subtheme: Causes erosion of physician-patient relationship

Sub-theme: Leads to positive downstream effects

Theme: Results in poor health care and financial resource utilization

Sub-subtheme: Provides greater education about HIV and HIV testing

Sub-theme: Results in unnecessary testing because of low yield

Theme: Makes more people aware of their status

Sub-subtheme: Increases risk of false positives, which leads emotional/financial distress and erosion of physician-patient relationship

Sub-theme: Leads to positive downstream effects

Sub-subtheme: Reduces future infections through changes in risk-taking behavior for those with positive or negative HIV test results

Theme: Leads to potential for cavalier implementation of testing recommendations

Sub-theme: Ignores need for population-specific HIV testing procedures, e.g., age-related, cultural Sub-theme: Further reduces likelihood that clinicians will review patient’s sexual risk

Theme: Improves efficiency and performance of testing techniques by clinical providers

Theme: Reduces patient barriers to testing

Theme: Results in negative downstream consequences of increased testing

Theme: Reduces stigma of HIV testing

Sub-theme: Overburdens health care system with newly diagnosed people needing treatment

Theme: Improves the structural framework and health care system for HIV testing

Theme: Creates resentment towards testing by patients and caregivers

Sub-theme: Results in patient avoidance of health care

Theme: Increases financial and emotional burden upon those who might not truly require testing

Theme: Serves public health needs

Theme: Increases testing without clear provision of meeting needs of those who are infected

Sub-theme: Provides public health care needs of community

Theme: Creates conflicts with parents over testing of adolescents

Sub-theme: Positively impacts health of individual though reduced transmission

Theme: Increases costs and emotional burdens because of unnecessary testing and increased likelihood of false positives

Theme: Obtains more information about patient’s health and health needs

Theme: Conducts necessary screening for maintaining and promoting health

Theme: Identifies unrecognized HIV infections or risks for infection

Theme: Broadens screening to previously untested populations

Theme: Destigmatizes HIV testing

Theme: Improves health care outcomes through screening for a treatable condition

Theme: Fails to individualize care

Sub-theme: Focuses on public health care

Theme: Informs patient about their health

Sub-theme: Does not provide patient-centered testing experience

Theme: Expands testing to those who might not have been tested otherwise

Theme: Increases testing without clear provision of meeting needs of those who are infected

Theme: Meets state-of-art medical care

Theme: Increases likelihood patients will be tested for HIV

Theme: Destigmatizes HIV testing

Theme: Identifies unrecognized HIV infections