what is the two rapid tests kits strategy for screening of HIV/AIDS at the level of the Points of Contact(POC

Question

the rapid tests are currently used for the screening and confirmation Of the HIV status of the person at the sites of VCTS(voluntary counselling & testing sites), Mother to child transmission testing and treatment centres.STD clinics.These tests are specially useful in the poor and developing countries as they are easy to run,simple to understand , many of them don't require refrigeration at the testing sites and they can be carried out by anybody after receiving the minmal training,.Their sensitivity and specificity are as good as the other tests currently carried out at the laboratories.WHO has produced guidelines(strategies) for carrying out rapid tests in different settings ,also called as algorithms.The two test strategy for screening and confirmation ,is one of them
My question is ,what is meant by the two rapid test kits algorithm, used for carrying out screening and confifmatory tests at the level of VCTs.

Answer 1

what is meant by the two kit algorith, I think the concept is that we need to rule out false positives after the first test (A good screening test is sensitive but not specific, ELISA in this case) there are multiple reasons for this, the second test, western blot is highly specific. Once confirmed then we can jump up to expensive and detailed things like virus levels or treatment etc, hope this answers your query, good luck