HIV counselor (also known as AIDS Counselor) undertakes several activities such as counseling, educating and aware people who are infected with HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus). HIV Counselor is responsible for planning, campaigning, policy making and dedicated towards care, treatment & improvement in infected person’s health. 

Duties and Responsibilities of HIV Counselor

• HIV Counselor responsible for assessment of risk of the disease at an early stage.
• The main responsibility of a HIV Counselor is to educate his clients on HIV, AIDS and STD’s and their implications through different programs & policies.
• HIV Counselor provides unbiased information on HIV testing to his clients & explains the testing process in simple way.
• Keep all the records, data about a patient confidential and safe.
• HIV Counselor maintains a list of certifications of Rapid HIV Test.
• HIV Counselor also conducts a report of risk assessment in which report he explains the implications of risk behaviors to his clients.
• HIV Counselor prepares a medical follow up for critical cases that have high risk of HIV infection.
• HIV Counselor has to submit a monthly statistical report as required by the program supervisor to look after every client properly on time.
• HIV Counselor has a responsibility to meet work plans & goals on time for the development and implementation of organization’s strategies.
• Not only above duties but HIV Counselor also performs other duties as assigned by the authorities of the clinic or employer.

Skills of a HIV Counselor

• It is very good to be bilingual for a HIV Counselor to talk comfortably with clinic clients. It gives an added advantage to his desired job.
• HIV Counselor must able to communicate with clients in a simple manner to make them understand, aware about the disease clearly.
• Basic knowledge & terminology about HIV/AIDS disease.
• Understanding of basic concepts of HIV related to HIV testing services and knowledge of disease prevention solutions.
• Successfully completed training required for HIV Counselor from government or local regulatory.
• HIV Counselor must able to explain a client what type(s) of HIV testing services are available at the clinic such as rapid HIV Testing, Confidential HIV Testing, conventional HIV Testing or Anonymous HIV Testing services.
• A HIV Counselor must give accurate, unbiased, clear information about the disease to his clients.

Career Options

Being an HIV/AIDS Counselor is a responsible job though you have different career options to start your career. Many local non-government & government health agencies are there to take a good start.  You can also start your career with other agencies like non-profit organizations, local area agencies or work with community – based job focusing on public health in specific cities/region.

An HIV Counselor abides by the State & Federal regulations regarding HIV patient testing, confidentiality about the patient information & disclosure.  In USA, The U.S Department of Health and Human Services provides guidelines for HIV Counselors for proper testing, help thorough various centers for disease control and prevention and case management.

Important Tests recommended by HIV Counselor

HIV/AIDS Counselor usually recommends some necessary tests for earlier detection of the disease like HIV RNA TEST, STD Test. These tests helps patient to identify the disease cure at an early stage although patient also can identify the disease by symptoms like

Qualification of a HIV Counselor

HIV Counselor is a professional in providing essential counseling services to the families & clients who have HIV/AIDS or HIV infection.  She/he must be good at providing advice, aware, inform people and help them to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS infection.

• Post-Secondary Education Requirements to be a HIV Counselor

In United States, some positions at the entry-level counseling available for the graduates having bachelor degree in Health related areas. On the other hand companies, clinics or counseling agencies preferred a candidate who possesses a master’s degree from an accredited graduate school.

• Licensure and Certification Requirements to be a HIV Counselor

1. Short term courses: In United States “American Red Cross” conducts a short-term course of certification for HIV/AIDS Prevention Education.

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) also conduct a certification course for individuals who wish to be a HIV Counselor.

1. Some HIV counselors prefer to get license from National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) to be mental health counselor or community counselor for advanced credentials.
2. Apart from the entire necessary requirement a HIV Counselor has to undergone a clinical experience 2,000 and 4,000 hours along with a master’s degree from state recognized university.
3. Once a HIV/AIDS Counselor complete all necessary licensing requirements, she/he gets distinction as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) to provide counseling & educational services to his clients.

HIV Counselor Salary

HIV Counselor is a responsible job; in this profession experience is more important than education. When we talk about salary expectation Hospitals, clinics, testing labs offer very good amount of salaries to a skillful candidate and if you desire to be a HIV Counselor, salary wouldn’t be a constraint for you. All you need to have good expertise in hospitality, language skills, handsome personality, basic knowledge of the job and positive attitude towards your career goals. Median expected salary for a typical HIV Counselor in the United States is $34820 per year.

Above is a Sample job description for desiring candidate for HIV Counselor that will help you in creating your job application for the job. You can edit this HIV Counselor job description to meet your specific job duties and job requirements by adding and removing content of your choice.

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