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STI Awareness Week
 
STI Awareness Week (April 14-20) provides an opportunity to raise awareness about sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and how they impact our lives, reduce STI-related stigma, fear, and discrimination, and ensure people have the tools and knowledge for prevention, testing, and treatment. Visit CDC’s website for graphics and messages to make it easy for you to reach your community.
Talk. Test. Treat. is a campaign that encourages individuals and healthcare providers to take three simple actions – Talk. Test. Treat. – to protect their health, the health of their partners, and that of their patients. The campaign reinforces that all STIs are preventable and treatable, and most are curable.


Nearly 1 in 5 people in the U.S. have a sexually transmitted infection (STI). However, STIs are not inevitable, and they can be prevented and treated. Make a plan and choose the prevention steps that work for you! Start here
CDC estimates that about 20 percent of the U.S. population – approximately one in five people in the U.S. – had an STI on any given day in 2018, and STIs acquired that year cost the American health care system nearly $16 billion in health care costs alone.
CDC released Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) Surveillance, 2022. The annual report – which highlights that the syphilis epidemic continues to escalate – underscores that STIs must be a public health priority. Overall, in 2022, more than 2.5 million cases of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia were reported in the United States. According to the report, syphilis cases (all stages and congenital syphilis) have increased 80 percent in the past five years. More than 3,700 congenital syphilis cases were reported in 2022, reflecting an alarming 937 percent increase in the past decade. County-level syphilis rates can help determine the syphilis burden in your county, which in turn can help you better understand which patients might need to be tested.
 
 
 
STI Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Resources
 
Recommendations for Providing Quality STD Clinical Services highlights the services health care settings can offer to help optimize STI care and used to identify opportunities to build, maintain, or enhance the delivery of services. The recommendations are designed to go hand-in-hand with the STI Treatment Guidelines and Screening Recommendations.

Guide to Taking a Sexual History – A booklet to assist in starting an open conversation with patients and delivering risk-reduction counseling.

National Coalition for Sexual Health (NCSH) – resources for healthcare providers:
  • Sexual Health and Your Patients: A Provider’s Guide – A guide for better integrating sexual health conversations and recommended preventative services into routine visits with patients.
  • Sexual Health and Your Patients: Pocket Cards – Three quick-reference pocket cards – one focusing on adults, one on adolescents, and one a combination of both – allow healthcare providers to access essential sexual health questions and preventative service recommendations in a clear and concise format.

HIV Nexus Clinician Resources – A one-stop location for information across the HIV continuum, including up-to-date tools and guidelines for your practice, and educational materials for your patients.
AMA: The Importance of Routinely Screening for HIV, STIs, Viral Hepatitis and LTBI
 
National STD Curriculum
 
The National STD Curriculum is a free educational website from the University of Washington STD Prevention Training Center. This project is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This site addresses the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, management, and prevention of STDs. Free CME credit and CNE/CE contact hours are offered throughout this site. Pharmacology CE for advanced practice nurses is also available for many activities.
 
 
Upcoming Events
 
Tackling STIs and Syphilis Prevention with DoxyPEP
The Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC) and the National Syphilis and Congenital Syphilis Syndemic (NSCSS) Federal Task Force have been conducting listening sessions nationwide with the priority jurisdictions to discuss current challenges and approach to syphilis response.
In collaboration with Fenway Health, a webinar for clinicians and other health care providers is being held on Tuesday, April 16 to discuss the surge in syphilis rates through innovative approaches, particularly highlighting the role of DoxyPEP (Doxycycline Post-Exposure Prophylaxis) as an emerging tool in the arsenal against STIs (sexually transmitted infections). Participants will explore the scientific underpinnings, practical application considerations, and the potential public health impact of integrating DoxyPEP into syphilis prevention strategies.

Tuesday, April 16 | 1:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT
Register here


HIV/STI/TB/Viral Hepatitis Lunch and Learn
Join us in April for a presentation on STI's presented by Hillary K. Liss.

Wednesday, April 24 | 12:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT
Register here
 
 
 
The Mountain West AIDS Education and Training Center (MWAETC) program is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $3,333,289 with 0% financed with non-governmental sources. The content in this presentation are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.

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