OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether situating a genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinic within a Brook centre is successful in attracting a younger client group than that traditionally seen in GUM clinics within hospitals. DESIGN: A descriptive study of a 6-month pilot clinic. SETTING: Brook in Manchester. A community clinic providing sexual health advice to clients under the age of 25 years. With the collaboration of Withington Hospital GUM Department, Manchester. PARTICIPANTS: All clients under the age of 25 years attending the pilot GUM clinic. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The age of the clients attending and the diagnosis made. RESULTS: A total of 137 visits were made by 93 clients. Under-16s comprised 6% of all visits compared to 1.5% at Withington GUM clinic (adjusted for the under-25s) and 12% at Brook. Far more Chlamydia trachomatis was seen (34% of all clients) than in a traditional GUM clinic (18% of all clients). Contact tracing resulted in 82% of named contacts being traced. CONCLUSION: The pilot clinic was successful in attracting a much younger client group than a traditional hospital-based service.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether situating a genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinic within a Brook centre is successful in attracting a younger client group than that traditionally seen in GUM clinics within hospitals. DESIGN: A descriptive study of a 6-month pilot clinic. SETTING: Brook in Manchester. A community clinic providing sexual health advice to clients under the age of 25 years. With the collaboration of Withington Hospital GUM Department, Manchester. PARTICIPANTS: All clients under the age of 25 years attending the pilot GUM clinic. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The age of the clients attending and the diagnosis made. RESULTS: A total of 137 visits were made by 93 clients. Under-16s comprised 6% of all visits compared to 1.5% at Withington GUM clinic (adjusted for the under-25s) and 12% at Brook. Far more Chlamydia trachomatis was seen (34% of all clients) than in a traditional GUM clinic (18% of all clients). Contact tracing resulted in 82% of named contacts being traced. CONCLUSION: The pilot clinic was successful in attracting a much younger client group than a traditional hospital-based service.