Evaluation of Counseling for Partner Notification

* In the formative stage of the project, we have investigated through qualitative and quantitative studies to identify a potential intervention to promote partner referral for sexually transmitted patients in Bangladesh. * We conducted a quasi-randomised trial to evaluate if single session counseling is effective in improving partner referral for patients with sexually transmitted infection.

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Key information

Conditions

Sexually Transmitted Infections Communicable Diseases Disease Attributes Genital Diseases Infections Pathologic Processes Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Sexually Transmitted Diseases Urogenital Diseases

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Phase 1 / Phase 2

Primary location

Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Skin VD out patient clinic

Dhaka, Dhaka Division, Bangladesh

About this study

The study was a quasi-randomized trial, alternating partner referral counselling and standard of care approach for each subsequent patient. First patients was randomly assigned by the project research physician in each clinic then alternative patients allocation was maintained by the study interviewers assigned in each clinic. For index cases assigned to the counselling arm, a same sex counselor conducted 10-15 minutes individualized sessions. Counselors were specifically trained to deliver partner referral counselling focusing on five issues related to STI prevention and transmission: (1) risk of re-infection if partners are not treated concurrently; (2) risk of developing complications; (3) risk of further spread of infection in the community; (4) the asymptomatic nature of infection; and (5) social obligations and personal coping with an STI. Patients in the standard care group received the existing services in the respective clinics, which included clinical consultation, prescription for medication but there was no partner referral counselling per se. In the public clinics, both the counselling and non-counselling group of clients received free medications, while in the NGO clinics they received subsidized fee medications. Both groups also received standard, pre-tested anonymous partner referral cards along with a short briefing by the interviewers that index clients need to hand over this card to their partner(s) to bring them to the respective clinics for assessment of STI status. Partner referral cards were used to follow-up partner referral by tracking the patient identification number and disease code of cards provided by referred patients. In addition, referral cards were useful for the partners to locate the study clinic, to be entitled to free or subsidized medication, and to distinguish the partners from index cases coming to the clinics.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

Each newly diagnosed STI patients
Age > 18 years
Who had a sexual exposure in last three months

Treatment and study plan

Single session counseling

Behavioral

For index cases assigned to the counselling arm, a same sex counselor conducted 10-15 minutes individualized sessions. Counselors were specifically trained to deliver partner referral counselling focusing on five issues related to STI prevention and transmission: (1) risk of re-infection if partners are not treated concurrently; (2) risk of developing complications; (3) risk of further spread of infection in the community; (4) the asymptomatic nature of infection; and (5) social obligations and personal coping with an STI.

Other names: counseling

Primary outcomes

Proportion of index cases, who referred one or more partner/s to the study clinics within one month of interview.

Time frame: within one month of interview

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Evaluation of Partner Notification for Sexually Transmitted Infections in Bangladesh

Acronym: PN

Important dates

Study start: 2006
Primary completion: 2007
Study completion: 2007
First posted: Feb 2, 2010
Registry last updated: Feb 2, 2010

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.

Completed