Is Partner Notification for Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) Acceptable to Men Who Have Sex With Men (MSM)? An Exploration of the Lay Perspective in the Context of an Outbreak of Syphilis

Claire Coleman, BA, PG, Dip¹, Cecily Begley, RGN, RM, RNT, FFNRCSI, DIP, N, Ed, DIP, Stats, MSC, PhD¹, Maria Lohan, N/A¹, Colm Bergin, N/A², Susan Hopkins, N/A², and Fiona Mulcahy, N/A². (1) School of Nursing & Midwifery Studies, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, (2) GUIDE clinic, St James's Hospital, Dublin, Ireland

Design: A qualitative component of a larger mixed method study will be described.

Concept studied: Partner notification is the practice of informing partners exposed to STIs of their exposure. The index patient (person with the infection) usually does this, or, alternatively, a health professional may inform the sexual partner without disclosing the identity of the index patient.

Sample and Setting: The sample is 15 MSM who were diagnosed with syphilis and a further 15 MSM attending a clinic as a result of partner notification, in the year 2003. The settings for the study are two sexual health clinics; one, the largest clinic in Ireland, and the second the only community based MSM sexual health service in Ireland.

Methods: Semi- structured individual interviews were carried out, transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis.

Findings: The findings of this research highlight the complexity of individuals’ concerns; while their own health and the health of others is very often an issue, there are potentially other concerns that may act as barriers to partner notification. Themes that emerged were concerns about privacy, the stigma of sexually transmitted infections, the issue of anonymous sex and the impact of disclosure on relationships.

Conclusions: The study has provided a rich insight into the perspective of men who have sex with men affected or infected by syphilis. While the practice of partner notification is often considered acceptable, the complexity of the issues for individuals affected should not be underestimated.

Implications: Partner notification, to operate effectively, depends on the willingness of the person with infection to inform or to voluntarily disclose details of his partners. It is necessary that the barriers to acceptability are therefore acknowledged and, if possible, addressed.

Learning Objective #1: Obtain an insight into the lay perspective of MSM affected or infected with syphilis
Learning Objective #2: Reflect on why important public health interventions have existed without giving adequate consideration to the voice of the layperson