This new service, offered by Harley Street’s The STI Clinic, has been launched as part of STIQ Day (January 14) – a day dedicated to promote sexual health testing.
The system has been created with the intention of assisting both the patient and their partners; strict measures have been put in place to prevent any form of abuse of the service: it can only be used by patients who definitely have a positive result and the ability to send an SMS has an expiry date, so old results cannot be misused.
Robert MacKay, founder of The STI Clinic, says: “We know from our experience that patients with positive STI results are reluctant to inform recent sexual partners. This anonymous text service allows people to communicate a message without having to engage in a difficult conversation.”
STIQ Day is held two weeks after New Year to encourage people to question their sexual health. Common STIs, such as chlamydia, can be tested for after a two-week window period. Around 1 in 12 test positive.
So, if you weren’t using your head (or condoms, for that matter) over the holidays, it’s about time you got yourself checked out.
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