Improving Sexual Health Risk Assessment in Primary Care
Abstract
Background or Problem/Issue: Sexual health, an integral component of overarching health, is not frequently assessed. Risky sexual decisions can lead to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unplanned pregnancies which can have long-lasting consequences. There were 26 million new STIs in the United States in 2018 and unintended pregnancies accounted for approximately 45 percent in the U.S. in 2011. Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations for sexual health care based on a patients risk factors, however, the only way to determine who is at risk is to perform a thorough sexual health risk assessment. Guidelines recommend utilizing questions based on the CDCs 5Ps model. Clinical Question or Purpose: In a primary care clinic, does implementation of a standardized sexual health risk assessment along with interactive staff education improve staff comfort and adherence with CDC and USPSTF Guidelines? Materials and Methods: Lewin's Change Theory framework was used to create sustainable evidence-based changes in a primary care setting. Educational intervention and implementation of a standardized assessment template were utilized to effect this change. Pre and post-education intervention retrospective chart review and pre and post-educational intervention questionnaires were completed to assess impact. Results: Pre and post-questionnaires were analyzed using Wilcoxin Sign Rank. While most remained unchanged, likely due to high confidence levels pre-intervention, several variables did reach significance, with a p-value of 0.05. Pre- and post-intervention chart audits were analyzed using chi-square, and a p-value of 0.05. Four out of the five 5Ps questions increased with clinical significance post-intervention. Conclusion: The goal of this project was to create a sustainable workflow change that would ensure patients receive appropriate sexual health care based on their individual risk factors.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 11, 2022
- Accession Number
- AD1186197
Entities
People
- Christina Elrod
- Janice Williams
- Lisa Umpa
- Rachel Newnam
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences