Dumfries and Galloway tops Chlamydia 'table'

Nov 28 2008 by Jackie Grant, Dumfries Standard Friday

DUMFRIES and Galloway has once again topped the Scottish table for having the highest rate of women under 25 with sexually transmitted infection Chlamydia.

And the male under 25 rate is the second highest in the country.

But a spokesman for NHS Dumfries and Galloway claimed this week that the results of a report by NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) could be down to the fact that the uptake of sexual health screening services in Scotland is on the rise. “NHS Dumfries and Galloway has a broad range of health improvement initiatives across the board in driving home knowledge and skills to enable young people to make the right and safe choices for themselves in relation to their sexual health,” he said.

“The figures released by NHS Services Scotland relating to Dumfries and Galloway reflect the robust testing for STIs in our area. We are amongst the highest rate for testing STIs such as Chlamydia in Scotland. This means that in comparative terms, we are able to identify more STIs and introduce appropriate measures for treatment.”

The good news coming from the report is that the region has the lowest rate for all acute STIs in woman and men under 25 and in men aged over 40, and also boasts the lowest rates of abortion in women over 40.

The NHS Dumfries and Galloway spokesman added: “The board has introduced through its health improvement teams and department of sexual health initiatives aimed at raising awareness of STIs for the public and agencies working with vulnerable groups, raising awareness amongst young people for the need to protect themselves from STIs and unplanned pregnancies and the introduction, through partnership working, to improve access to condoms, STI testing and appropriate specialist services.

“These initiatives also include multi-agency sexual health training days; ‘Let's talk about sex’ awareness week; Sexual Health Relationship Education project in schools and the Speakeasy project aimed at parents and carers to improve communication with young people about sex."