Golden is the senior author of a study published Sept. 17 in Paediatrics that examines whether California paediatric residents –
New physicians receiving specialty training in paediatric medicine — know about expedited partner therapy, which helps doctors stop sexually transmitted diseases from bouncing back and forth within a couple. Knowledge of expedited partner therapy is better in physicians enrolled in the state’s three residency programs that offer fellowships in adolescent medicine.
Expedited partner therapy laws, which were introduced in California, have since been adopted in 30 other states, to allow physicians to prescribe antibiotics to the sexual partners of Gonorrhoea or Chlamydia patients without seeing the partner. Earlier, laws authorized state health departments to contact sexual partners of people diagnosed with these infections and to test and treat the partners. However, most health departments lack the resources to offer this service widely. Expedited partner therapy has been shown to be an effective alternative, especially in cases where the patient says his or her partner is unlikely to visit a Doctor.
The Research study results suggest that the lack of familiarity with Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT) extends beyond residents to more experienced paediatricians, the research team said. It may be that many of the paediatrician mentors don’t know about these laws. The findings underscore the need for a more systematic approach to incorporating EPT information into paediatricians’ training.
The best way for adolescents to deal with STDs is to avoid getting them in the first place. Parents of teenagers should be encouraged to talk to their kids about sexual health. If parents can speak to their children about protecting against sexually transmitted infections, that’s very useful. Obviously, using protection such as condoms is the best way to prevent these infections.
The best person other than a parent for teens to talk to about these issues is the paediatrician. Regardless of whether parents weigh in, it’s the responsibility of paediatricians to broach the subject with teens, and parents should ensure that their adolescent children have time to have confidential conversations with their paediatricians, without mom or dad present.