
%0 Journal Article
%A Lawton, Beverley 
%A Rose, Sally 
%A Raina Elley, C 
%A Bromhead, Collette 
%A Jane MacDonald, E 
%A Baker, Michael 
%T Increasing the uptake of opportunistic chlamydia screening: a pilot study in general practice
%J Journal of Primary Health Care
%D 2010/09/01
%V 2
%N 3
%P 199-207
%K 
%R https://doi.org/10.1071/HC10199
%U https://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/HC10199 
%X INTRODUCTION: Genitourinary Chlamydia trachomatis infection is common and associated with considerable personal and public health cost. Effective detection strategies are needed. Aim: To assess feasibility of an opportunistic incentivised chlamydia screening programme in general practice over six months. METHODS: This study was designed as a pilot for a randomised controlled trial in primary care. Three general practices were randomly allocated to intervention (two practices) and control groups. The intervention involved practice education, self-sample collection and practice incentives (funding and feedback) for a three-month &#x91;active&#x92; intervention period. Feedback and education was discontinued during the second three-month period. Practice-specific nurse- or doctor-led strategies were developed for identifying, testing, treating and recalling male and female patients aged 16&#x96;24 years. The main outcome measure was the difference between the practices&#x92; chlamydia screening rates over the six months following introduction of the intervention, controlling for baseline rates from the previous year. RESULTS: Chlamydia testing rates during the year prior to the intervention ranged from 2.9% to 7.0% of practice attendances by 16&#x96;24-year-olds. The intervention practices had higher rates of screening compared with the control practice (p<0.001) at three months, but both practices reverted to pre-intervention rates by six months. The nurse-led screening strategy was more effective (35% declining to 5.5% over six months) than the doctor-led strategy (15% declining to 1.6% over six months) (p=0.04). DISCUSSION: Incentivised opportunistic chlamydia screening of 16&#x96;24-year-old patients attending their general practitioner with a programme involving practice education, feedback and self-sample collection can increase screening rates. KEYWORDS: Primary health care; chlamydia; mass screening; randomized controlled trial 
