NCSP: 3Cs and HIV programme
Aims to improve staff awareness to boost chlamydia testing offers, provision of contraceptive information and free condoms to 15 to 24 year olds and HIV tests.
GP engagement pilot
The National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) is committed to opportunistic chlamydia screening for young adults, delivered as part of a basic sexual health offer in routine primary care and sexual health consultations. We recognise the valuable contribution that general practice can and does make to this work. We also recognise that practice varies. To support general practices and local areas increase screening, Public Health England (PHE) piloted the 3Cs and HIV programme during 2013 to 2015.
The 3Cs and HIV pilot focuses on supporting practices across England to:
- provide the ‘3Cs’ offer of a chlamydia screen, signposting or provision of contraceptive advice and free condoms, during routine consultations with young adults (15 to 24 year olds)
- deliver HIV testing in adults (>= 16 years) in line with current clinical guidelines: raising awareness of indicator conditions where HIV testing should be considered and, in high prevalence areas, routine offer of HIV test to all new practice registrants
The 3Cs & HIV pilot was designed to strengthen sexual health work already funded and underway in local areas, being delivered by general practices. The pilot’s design and evaluation was informed and guided by a GP and practice nurse advisory panel.
The programme adapts an intervention previously trialled by PHE, based on the theory of planned behaviour. In this randomised controlled trial, surgeries that fully engaged with the pilot intervention increased chlamydia detection by 76% (p=0.005). The trial results provide a realistic measure of the likely take-up and efficacy of the 3Cs & HIV programme when commissioned in general practice.
For more information on the 3Cs & HIV pilot design and evaluation methodology please see the protocol paper.
Pilot results
The 3Cs & HIV pilot aimed to evaluate the uptake and impact of an educational training intervention to increase sexual and reproductive health provision within general practice under ‘real world’ conditions.
Overall, the pilot found:
- no significant change in chlamydia testing or diagnoses following training
- increases in chlamydia screening were found in some sub-groups of practices suggesting the intervention may have an effect in specific settings
- the intervention had a positive impact on local relationships between sexual health services and general practice
Full details of the results can be found in the service evaluation paper.
Resources used in 3Cs & HIV pilot
If you are interested in accessing the presentations used during the pilot contact ncspteam@phe.gov.uk.
Please note that these resources were developed in 2013 and have not been adapted following the outcome of the pilot. It is important that use of these resources should be planned and considered in light of the findings as mentioned above.