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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Anjum Khurshid, MBBS, MPAff¹, Daniel Goldman, MD, MPH², Sheetal Malhotra, MBBS, MS¹, and Katherine Hendricks, MD, MPH¹. (1) The Medical Institute for Sexual Health, 1101 S Capital of Texas Hwy, B 100, Austin, TX 78746, 512-328-6268, akhurshid@medinstitute.org, (2) EHDP, 1608 Glenwood Ave SE, Renton, WA 98058

Background: Early detection of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) through screening can prevent or minimize many STI consequences. About 19 million Americans are infected with an STI annually and many are unaware of their infection. Despite this enormous public health problem, physician uptake of STI screening is poor. To help address these problems and take advantage of the public's desire to seek healthcare information on the Internet, we have developed an innovative “STD Wizard” interface for the public. This online tool collects demographic and behavioral risk information and provides screening recommendations based on CDC guidelines.

Objective: To evaluate the usability of the STD Wizard and its impact on reported screening uptake in college students.

Methodology: The STD Wizard was evaluated in college students using an intervention/nonintervention, pre-test/post-test design. 468 students from 52 undergraduate classes in two universities completed an online pre-test and were randomly assigned to an STD Wizard intervention or a nonintervention group. Post-tests were administered to all students at two weeks and two months.

Results: 292 (62%) females and 176 (38%) males participated in the study. 100% of the intervention group found the STD Wizard easy to use; most (81%) also found it useful. 45% (97/216) of the students who went through the STD Wizard received screening recommendations. 57% (55/97) of students who received recommendations had seen (21%) or intended to see (36%) a doctor in the near future.

Conclusion: The STD Wizard is an easy-to-use and effective online tool for the promotion of STI screening.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Describe the STI epidemic and poor uptake of screening by physicians
• Identify examples of screening that have been marketed directly to the public
• Learn about innovative use of the Internet to improve screening for STIs in the general public and to communicate health risks, and
• Discuss the response of college students to the STD Wizard

Keywords: STD Prevention, Screening Instruments

Related Web page: www.ehdp.com/kt/html/cdc-1052/intro.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation