Young men urged to go to free safe sex clinics
Numbers have dropped after Covid disruption
A new campaign has been launched by NHS Lanarkshire to encourage young men to access its free safe sex advice and support services.
The initiative is part of #SaferSexLanarkshire awareness week, which runs until Sunday.
There has been a dramatic decline in the number of young men accessing essential sexual health services across Lanarkshire.
Experts believe disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic is partly to blame for the 32 per cent fall in the number of male attendance since the beginning of 2020.
So far this year, just eight per cent of all youngsters’ clinic appointments were booked by men – down from 18 per cent on four years ago.
During #SaferSexLanarkshire week, clinicians are making a fresh appeal to young men across the region to access the “free, confidential, and discreet services” that are available.
Drop-in clinics and other support systems are in place at Coatbridge’s Coathill Hospital.
Dr Rashmi Ronghe, lead consultant in sexual health, said: “The pandemic has presented us with challenges, but the proportion of young females accessing services has always been significantly higher than males.
“What we want is for young males to understand what free services are on offer and how easily they can accessed, and without worrying about being embarrassed.
“Safer sex will help prevent
unintended pregnancies and stop the contraction of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and blood borne viruses.
“STIs remain high, particularly among young people in Scotland, and can go undiagnosed as they can often be symptomless.”
The clinics at Coathill Hospital are for youngsters across Lanarkshire and the team are delighted to offer their help to anyone looking for someone to turn to.
Karen Stewart, sexual health team lead, said: “Young men are reluctant to attend a clinic on their own, but if they are aware of a pal who has attended, they are much more likely to visit. The prevailing attitude is
Picture posed by models young males will only attend if they absolutely have to.
“But what we want to do is prevent infections in the first place, and then if there is a problem, treat it as quickly as possible.
“We now have nine sites with doctors on hand and a big part of bringing in new people is word of mouth among kids.
“We have regulars who come back to us and ask for the person they previously spoke to which means relationships, and positions of trust, are built.
“I love what I do and the best part of my week is holding the young person’s clinic.
“It’s such a buzz and the youngsters coming in don’t even see the uniform any more – they just see someone who is there to listen to, and help them.
“All of our services are free, easy to access, and we take great care to ensure that they are as discreet and reassuring as possible.
“We encourage everyone to access the services on offer during #SaferSexLanarkshire week and beyond.”
Dr Ronghe, who was appointed lead consultant in 2012, added: “Our health promotion department developed a community list and we sent the information on to schools and youth workers.
“We have found that youths prefer finding out information via apps and online materials to leaflets and these electronic methods can be updated more regularly and easily.”
Urging young men to make use of the services available, Dr Ronghe added: “Youngsters shouldn’t be embarrassed to come to us for help.
“All of our staff go above and beyond and are so welcoming; they make people feel so comfortable.
“There are a lot of sexual infections where symptoms don’t show up, but we will still offer tests and do everything we can to keep people healthy.”
Between 2018 and the end of last year, overall attendance at sexual health young people clinics dropped by 37 per cent, with a 64 per cent decrease in males over the same period.
Details of all the free, easy to access and confidential sexual health services on offer across Lanarkshire can be found online.