Scotland is often praised for having some of the best HIV health outcomes in the world. Yet, for many people living with HIV, accessing mental health support remains a real challenge.
Last November, the National AIDS Trust published the report Beyond the Virus: Prioritising mental health for people living with HIV in Scotland. It established that, despite progress, significant barriers still prevent many from getting the support they require.
People living with HIV in the UK are 63% more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness compared to people without HIV. Likewise, two in five people living with HIV currently have a diagnosis of at least one mental health condition – substantially higher than the population average.
HIV & Mental Health: A Two-Way Relationship
The link between HIV and mental health goes both ways. Mental health challenges can increase a person’s risk of acquiring HIV. And for those already living with HIV, stigma, isolation, and fear can lead to poor mental well-being.
Despite this, the Scottish Government’s HIV Transmission Elimination Delivery Plan 2023-26 does not mention specific plans for ensuring mental health support for people living with HIV. Guaranteeing high-quality, accessible mental health support for all people living with HIV is critical, as we know that struggling with mental health issues makes people less likely to engage in their HIV care.
Barriers to Accessing Support
One of the biggest challenges people living with HIV face is stigma. Stigma around HIV continues to fuel discrimination and poor mental health. Moreover, we know that stigma prevents people from seeking out help in the first place.
Waverley Care has long campaigned for uptake by the Scottish Government and NHS boards of the HIV Confident charter. It is hoped that in doing so, healthcare providers would have the knowledge and skills required to embed policies which protect against HIV stigma and discrimination into their working practice and staff training.
However, not everyone experiences these challenges in the same way. Research conducted by Waverley Care found that people with African heritage living in Scotland, with a diagnosis of HIV, often must navigate unique barriers to accessing care. These may include factors such as immigration status, experiences of stigma (including HIV-related stigma), mistrust in healthcare services, limited access to culturally appropriate sexual health education, and challenges related to navigating different health beliefs or systems.
Waverley Care’s Health Improvement Team prides itself on having 17 years of hands-on experience working with African communities, providing essential mental health services such as 1:1 support, a health and wellbeing group, and a new mother from migrant communities group.
The Importance of Peer Support
What is clear is that living with HIV can sometimes feel isolating; never mind when faced with societal stigma and barriers when trying to access support. At Waverley Care, we offer compassionate peer support services for people living with HIV and their loved ones, delivered by our trained volunteers who bring their lived experience of HIV to their work.
In our experience, we have found that peer support is an invaluable tool for engaging people in their HIV care and treatment. The peer support we deliver has had a demonstrable positive impact on the mental health of the people our volunteers work with.
At the moment, however, we are only in a position to deliver our services in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Sadly, access to vital peer support services, like ours, varies greatly by geography, which has led to a ‘postcode lottery’ of support. That is why, during Mental Health Awareness Week 2025, we are calling on the Scottish Government to commit to adequate, long-term funding for peer support, in line with the recommendations made in the Beyond the Virus report.
With the necessary funding, Waverley Care could reach all who would benefit from peer support, wherever they are in Scotland.
Useful links
Gooden, T.E. et al. (2022) “The risk of mental illness in people living with HIV in the UK: a propensity score-matched cohort study.
UK Health Security Agency (2024) Positive Voices 2022: survey report.
United for Global Mental Health (2022) HIV, TB and the Global Fund.
Waverley Care Peer Support
Find out more about Waverley Care's peer support services in Glasgow and Edinburgh.