Unprotected sex? You might need PEP

What is PEP?

PEP is medication that prevents you from getting HIV. Did you take your PEP soon after having sex? Then the chance of HIV is extremely low. You need to take the medication for 28 days.

When do I need to pick up PEP? 

You will only get PEP if there’s a very high chance that you got HIV. This is only in the following cases:

• You had unprotected sex. This means you didn’t use a condom. And you don’t take PrEP, or you forgot to take the pills. This is a medication you can take before and after sex to prevent getting HIV.
• You had sex against your will (you were raped)

And

• Someone’s penis was in your ass 
• Or you took drugs together with the same needle
• The person you had sex with has HIV, but you don’t know if they take their medication
• You don’t know if the person has HIV or not

Read how you could get HIV

Did you have sex, and do you think you might have HIV? Then go to the GGD or the ER at the hospital right after the sex. Tell the doctor what happened. They will decide if you need to take PEP.

If possible, take along the person you had sex with to the doctor. They can examine your partner’s blood to check if it’s possible for him to pass on HIV to you. If it’s impossible, you won’t need to take PEP.

Start taking medication as soon as possible

Start your medication immediately. Then the chance of getting HIV is the lowest. It’s best to start taking PEP within 2 hours after the sex. 

It doesn’t make sense to start PEP if more than 72 hours have passed: the medication will no longer work at this point.

Where can you get PEP?

You can get PEP at the GGD. 

Find a GGD in your area

Is the GGD closed? For example in the evening, at night, in the weekend? Check your GGD website where you can best go for help. You can go to the Emergency Room (ER) of a hospital in your area. Not all hospitals have PEP. Call the hospital first to check if they have PEP. Or look for a hospital with a ward for people with HIV. This is called an HIV treatment centre (hiv-behandelcentrum in Dutch). 

Find an HIV treatment centre

If possible, take along the person you had sex with. The doctor can test his blood, to check:

• If this person has HIV
• If the person can pass on HIV to you

The doctor decides if you need medication or not.

Do you need to pay for PEP?

No, you don’t have to pay for PEP. This medication is covered by health insurance. But it is included in your health insurance excess (eigen risico). So sometimes you have to cover part of the cost yourself.

How do you use PEP?

It’s important to always take your medication. If you don’t, it will not work well, and you might get HIV after all. Pay attention to this:

• Take your medication every day at the right time.
• Take it for 4 weeks. Do not stop until you have finished them.
• Get tested for HIV at your GP’s or at the GGD 3 and 6 months after finishing the cure. With a test you will know for sure if you have HIV or not. Read more about HIV tests
• If you are having sex, use a condom until you get the negative result from your second HIV test. During this time, you cannot use PrEP.

Can PEP cause side-effects?

The medication can cause some side-effects. These are the most common ones:

• Headache
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Fatigue

After some time, they stop on their own.

How can you make sure to not get HIV?

Is the test result negative? Then make sure to start protecting yourself well against HIV:

• Use a condom when you have sex.
• Take medication to prevent you from getting HIV: PrEP
• Get tested for HIV 2 times a year, so you can know for sure that you don’t have HIV

What is the difference between PEP and PrEP?

PrEP is also medication that prevents you from getting HIV. You take it before having sex, so before putting yourself at risk for HIV. 

This is the most important difference:

• PEP must be taken after having sex if you think you might have gotten HIV. To get it, you need to go to the GGD right after the sex.
• PrEP is taken before and after having sex, to make sure you won’t get HIV. PrEP can be taken daily or only before and after sex. 

Read more about PrEP or watch the video to see what the difference is.