International Journal of STD & AIDS > Volume 19, Number 6 > Pp. 363-366

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Original research articles

Patients' reasons for attending the genitourinary medicine clinic

A R Markos FRCOG FRCP 

Department of Genitourinary Medicine, Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals, NHS Trust, Weston Road, Stafford ST16 3SA, UK

Correspondence to: Dr A R Markos Email: atef.markos{at}msgh-tr.wmids.nhs.uk

Patients' reasons for attending the genitourinary medicine clinic inform and dictate the range of provisions and advice that the staff should provide. The objective analysis of these reasons would better inform the process of triage, clinical services and contractual arrangements (e.g. new to follow-up ratios). Our findings indicate that almost one in every two patients is presenting first with genitourinary symptoms and the majority of the remainder either identified themselves to be at risk or were identified by the attending clinician as having medical concerns and/or risk factors. This patient group could benefit, and must be offered, tests to exclude all sexually transmitted infections (within the condition's own incubation/test window periods).

Key Words: genitourinary medicine • genitourinary clinic • symptoms • requests • patients

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