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Trends in patient’s use of sexual health services during COVID-19 in a network of STD clinics, STD Surveillance Network, 2019–2021
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10 01 2023
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Source: Sex Transm Dis. 50(10):692-698
[PDF-901.16 KB]
Details:
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Alternative Title:Sex Transm Dis
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Personal Author:
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Description:Background:
The initial years of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted sexual healthcare clinic’s services. We describe use patterns by patient characteristics, and the use of telehealth (TH) services among a network of sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics.
Methods:
Data were collected using a survey to assess the impact of COVID-19 from March – December 2020 among seven jurisdictions who contribute STD visit-level data as part of the STD Surveillance Network. As a complement to the survey, retrospective data from January 2019 – December 2021 from these seven STD clinics in the same seven jurisdictions were examined for monthly utilization trends by overall visits, patient characteristics, and TH visits.
Results:
Survey results indicated seven clinics prioritized patients for in-person visits and four jurisdictions reported urgent care centers were the most common referral location. In April 2020 (relative to April 2019) clinic visits and unique patients decreased by 68.0% and 75.8%, respectively. TH were documented in four clinics, beginning in March 2020, peaking in December 2020, and tapering until December 2021. We observed the number of clinic visits (-12.2%) and unique patients presenting for care (-27.2%)in December 2021 had yet to return to levels to that seen in December 2019.
Conclusion:
STD clinics showed fragility and resiliency in their adjustment to the pandemic; allowing for the continuation of services. Overall patient census has been slow to return to pre-pandemic levels, and many patients may still not be seeking timely care. This could result in missed opportunities to screen and treat STIs and increasing the possibility of harmful sequelae.
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Pubmed ID:37255255
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Pubmed Central ID:PMC11201968
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Volume:50
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Issue:10
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