Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) pose a continual risk to the public’s health, and represent a tremendous disease burden in the U.S. 1 in 5 Americans has an STI at any given time, and gonorrhea cases have increased by 45% between 2016 and 2020.
In collaboration with CDC’s National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, PHII coordinates STI Connect, a data modernization effort that aims to simplify how public health and healthcare exchange data about reportable infectious diseases. Through a blend of clinical decision support and electronic case reporting standards, STI Connect aims to lessen the burden on both providers and public health as they manage data and patient care guidelines for STIs.
The STI Connect initiative is organized into two key work areas: electronic case reporting and clinical decision support.
eCR for STIs Toolkit
Electronic case reporting
Electronic case reporting (eCR) refers to the automated exchange of data related to reportable cases between clinical providers and public health authorities. Working in collaboration with CDC, PHII has made guidance available on the use of eCR to improve timeliness and efficiency of STI case reporting.
Clinical decision support pilot
Clinical decision support (CDS) provides critical guidance to healthcare providers at the point-of-care to guide clinical decision-making related to patient care. CDS enables providers to make clinical decisions in line with the most up-to-date science and guidelines available. PHII is preparing to lead a CDS pilot, and is currently recruiting clinical partners.
Note: This work was conducted in support of Cooperative Agreement number 6-NU38OT000316, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Resource contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the CDC or the Department of Health and Human Services.