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Implementation of STI Screenings in Two New Orleans High Schools
In 2013, the state of Louisiana—which does not mandate sexual education in schools—ranked first in Gonorrhea rates and second in Chlamydia rates. Nationally, 67% of reported Chlamydia cases and 56% of reported Gonorrhea cases occurred in the 15-24 year old age group. This reflects a troubling national trend amongst our nation’s youngest sexually active citizens, and highlights a high burden of infection in adolescent Louisianans.
Methods
The LSU Health Sciences Center-New Orleans Department of Pediatrics oversees School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) on the grounds of three local high schools. These centers provide many health services to students, including confidential STI screenings. Identifying the need to bring similar services to schools without a SBHC, the New Orleans Adolescent Reproductive Health Project (NOARHP) implemented STI screening days on the campuses of two high schools that do not have their own health center. SBHC staff and NOARHP volunteers set up confidential testing sites on school grounds where urine samples for chlamydia and gonorrhea PCR testing were collected. Results were then returned on campus two weeks later.
Results
The first screening occurred in April 2014 and screened a total of 26 students, 4 of which tested positive for either chlamydia or gonorrhea. The second screening occurred in October 2014 and screened a total of 26 students, 1 of which tested positive for either chlamydia or gonorrhea.
Conclusions
It is NOARHP and the SBHC’s goal to implement more STI screenings as NOARHP expands its reach into more schools without their own SBHC.
Learning Areas:
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programsLearning Objectives:
Discuss the prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Infections in the 15-24 year old age group
Identify the impact of School-Based Health Centers on adolescent access to health screenings
Demonstrate how to effectively implement STI screenings on school campuses that do not have a School-Based Health Center
Keyword(s): Adolescents, School-Based Health
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a third year medical student who has volunteered with the New Orleans Adolescent Reproductive Health Project for 2 years now. This past year, I helped implement the STI screening program documented in this abstract.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.