PARTNER FORUM Featured Partner

The National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD) is a partnership of public health professionals dedicated to the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). NCSD provides dynamic leadership that strengthens STD programs by advocating for effective policies, strategies, and sufficient resources and by increasing awareness of their medical and social impact.

Situated in the nation's capital, NCSD works toward the development of systemic change and promotion of national awareness in the policies that govern STDs. As the only national organization with a constituency that provides frontline STD programs and services, NCSD uses its experiences to enhance reform in the policymaking process. NCSD proactively seeks to increase resources for core STD programs and services. NCSD also responds swiftly to efforts to curtail access to services and sexual health information.

Accessing the Power of the Internet for Public Health: Guidelines for Internet-based Partner Notification, Internet Outreach, and Internet Communications

Access to the Internet is ubiquitous in the United States, and research has shown it to have an impact on STD transmission. As the use of the Internet and other technologies continues to grow, many program areas turned to NCSD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for guidance on using the Internet as a tool for the control and prevention of STDs, including HIV. Because of these requests for direction, an effort was initiated to bring together those conducting STD prevention online to create guidance based on both successes and mistakes. Using their collective knowledge and experience, a guidance document was created that will help STD prevention programs initiate and conduct successful Internet efforts.

In creating the guidance, NCSD, CDC and its partners had two objectives: to document what is known nationally about promising practices for using the Internet for control and prevention of STDs and to establish a baseline of operating procedures that will help assure consistency in the quality of services and management of risk related to these services. The aim is to create a useful and user friendly document that is helpful to state public health departments and community-based nonprofit organizations who want to begin using the Internet or want to expand or improve their current Internet efforts. Because the use of the Internet for the control and prevention of STDs is still new and evolving, these guidelines will continue to evolve as practice changes and additional evidence emerges.

American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations have disproportionately high rates of STDs. Compared to whites, AI/AN populations were almost six times as likely to have chlamydia, four times as likely to have gonorrhea, and twice as likely to have syphilis.

In order to strengthen collaboration and coordination of STD prevention and control efforts in AI/AN communities, NCSD developed national and state fact sheets for STDs in American Indians and Alaska Natives to increase awareness of these populations in each project area and gain insightful information and statistics in its effort to prevent STDs.

Accessing the Power of the Internet for Public Health: Guidelines for Internet-based STD/HIV Prevention is a user-friendly document developed to aid health departments and community-based nonprofit organizations to use the Internet as a tool for the control and prevention of STDs, including HIV.

Guidelines focus on three distinct types of Internet activities: Internet-based partner services (IPS), outreach, and health communications. These three activities were chosen based on their current use in the field (IPS) and the overarching nature for which other online activities derive (outreach and health communications). While IPS is a discrete interaction with a trained Internet disease intervention specialist, STD/HIV outreach and health communication activities carried out online are intended to be broad-reaching.

CDC STD Resources

In addition, the CDC Division of STD Prevention Web page offers multiple resources such as brochures, e-cards, posters, and state directories for additional information.

CDC NPIN Resources

The CDC National Prevention Information Network (NPIN) offers STD prevention resources. To search, download, and/or order STD prevention resources, please visit the NPIN materials database.

Contact the NPIN Outreach Team for more information on Featured Partner nominations – npinoutreach@cdcnpin.org