How will increasing the provision of partner services reduce HIV/STD transmission?
A. Research suggests that individuals who are infected with HIV or another STD and unaware of their infections contribute disproportionately to ongoing disease transmission in the community. In addition, studies have shown that finding and diagnosing these infected individuals may lead to decreased transmission, either by eliminating infection sources (i.e., treatment for those with curable STDs) or by decreasing risk behaviors (i.e., through counseling for those with incurable STDs). Thus, partner services may lead to decreases in STD and HIV transmission in the community because it is an effective means of finding individuals with undiagnosed infections and linking them to testing, medical care and treatment, and prevention services. The challenge for STD and HIV prevention programs is ensuring that partner services and other public health interventions are effectively delivered to enough people that they have an impact on jurisdiction-wide morbidity. Health departments should regula
