Sexually Transmitted Infections “I have an STI,” is not a statement anyone wants to hear or say. According to Kane et al. (2017) sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a common reason for Emergency Department (ED) visits. There are over twenty million new STIs each year and almost half of them are among young people, ages 15-24 (Sexually Transmitted Diseases 2020). A family nurse practitioner (FNP) can work in a multitude of healthcare settings, being able to properly diagnose, treat, and educate each specific population with the most up to date STI guidelines would help prevent STI complications, decrease antibiotic resistant strains, and increase awareness about STI prevention. POI Significance STI education is significant to a FNP with a subspecialty in advanced forensic nursing because of the populations they would be treating, especially if the provider is working at a military treatment facility. The three types of populations a provider with these credentials would be working with are the adolescent and young adult population, the sexual assault patient population, as well as the military and veteran population. All three populations have an increased risk of obtaining a STI based on age, crime, and job. The more these infections are treated with antibiotics, the higher the risk of concern regarding the threat of multidrug resistance (Armed Forces Health Surveillance Branch, 2020). That is why it is important to obtain a correct diagnosis the first time, provide the correct treatment, and educate on the ways to prevent contracting a STI. This topic is very important because of the increase risks and rates of multidrug resistant STIs. Bodie et al. (2019) explains that the current recommendation for combination therapy is now being threatened by globally emerging and increasingly resistant strains. One STI that already has resistant strains, is the gonococcal strain. As this strain becomes more resistant to antibiotics, it can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility and chronic pelvic pain in women; and epididymitis in men (Bodie et al., 2019). There are process measures that need to be monitored for effectiveness
The percentage of people that receive these services would indicate what family practice nurses and those that specialize in advanced forensic nursing do to reduce the transmission of STIs and decrease the risk of creating more multidrug resistant strains (Types of Health Care Quality Measures, 2015). The measures taken to provide the most up to date treatment for these infections would come from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Guidelines, 2015. By providing frequent education to the community and during the periodic testing of patients, the family nurse practitioners can increase the patient’s knowledge on what is expected when or if they test positive for STIs. PICO P: Adolescents and young adults, ages 10-35, in an outpatient setting at a military treatment facility I: implementation of periodic testing and frequent educational intervention C: no periodic testing or educational intervention O: increase knowledge on STI prevention; decrease the transmission of STIs in patients who are unaware that they have one; treat after testing positive instead of empirically to reduce multidrug resistance Clinical Question: In adolescents and young adults, ages 10-35, that present in an outpatient setting in a military treatment facility, would the implementation of periodic testing and frequent educational interventions be more effective than not having periodic testing or educational interventions in reducing the STI positivity rate as evidence by: an increased knowledge of STIs, increased awareness for patients that are positive, and a decrease in multidrug resistance infections. Appraisal Tool See Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence Based Practice appraisal tool submitted with paper
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