HIV Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP)

HIV Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP)

HIV Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is a 4-week course of medications that you can take if you are HIV negative and think that you have been recently exposed to HIV. The medications are called antiretroviral drugs (or HAART), and are the same drugs used to treat HIV infection.

In most cases, HIV PEP stops HIV from establishing itself in the body and will prevent you from becoming HIV positive. To be effective, the treatment needs to be started as soon as possible in the first 72 hours after exposure. The treatment needs to be taken correctly and daily over the next 28 days.

HIV PEP is different from HIV PrEP, or ‘pre-exposure prophylaxis’, as HIV PEP is taken after a potential exposure to HIV and HIV PrEP is taken before a potential exposure.

How can I get HIV PEP?

In BC, HIV PEP is available free of charge if someone has been exposed to HIV in their workplace (like a needle stick injury) or if someone has been sexually assaulted and may have been exposed to HIV. Non-occupational exposure HIV PEP (called nPEP) is available free of charge if someone has been exposed to HIV through consensual adult sex or sharing of drug use equipment.

If you think you have recently been exposed to HIV and you may benefit from HIV PEP, you should be assessed by a clinician as soon as possible. Five-day starter kits for HIV PEP are available in all emergency rooms in BC, as well as outpost nursing stations and provincial prisons. You can also use the clinic finder and filter for locations that offer HIV PEP.