COAST – the highly innovative Chlamydia screening programme for Northern Lincolnshire has made a flying start since its launch in April with the team already having carried out their 1000th screening.
The service for under 25s has made a massive impact since it began, mainly due to its easy access, friendly service. Young people can be screened at one of over 60 sites including youth centres, sports clubs and even a café, then receive their results by a number of methods including text messages and email.
COAST Team Manager, Paul Watson explained. “We’ve received excellent feedback from users, they find it a very easy, hassle free service. Every aspect of the process has been made as easy as possible including the actual test which requires a simple urine sample. The treatment is also straight forward, in most cases it is one dose of anti-biotics.”
Despite this simplicity Paul’s keen to stress the risk from Chlamydia, “the major problem with Chlamydia is that it often has no symptoms so can go un-noticed for long periods of time. However it can cause infertility in both men and women as well as Pelvic Inflammatory Disease in women.”
Since its inception COAST quickly became recognised nationally as one of the most innovative schemes in the country with many other screening programmes adopting ideas devised by the COAST team.
Alison Binns Health Advisor with COAST explained why, “it’s very convenient, we can use text messages to contact our clients meaning that results are conveyed speedily, in some cases we have gone from text to treatment in less than 2 hours. This obviously reduces the risk of those with Chlamydia infecting their sexual partners. Males particulary have welcomed the new scheme, 30% of the screenings in the first three months were males compared to a national average of 17%.”
Now COAST’s latest initiative “Wee 4 a Wii” means that anyone testing between now and mid December will be entered into a free prize draw to win a Nintendo Wii Games Console which has kindly been donated by PFC Limited.
All young people need do is attend one of the COAST sites and be screened and they will be automatically entered into the prize draw that will be drawn on 14th December 2007.
For more information about COAST and to find your nearest screening site please call
01472 255216 or visit
www.coast-lincs.nhs.uk.
