I. Rasooly et al., A SURVEY OF PUBLIC-HEALTH PARTNER NOTIFICATION FOR SEXUALLY-TRANSMITTED DISEASES IN CANADA, Canadian journal of public health, 85, 1994, pp. 190000048-190000052
Objective: To describe the range of practice for sexually transmitted
disease (STD) contact tracing/partner notification (PN) by public heal
th agencies in Canada. Methods: A two-level mailed survey, using two d
ifferent questionnaires, was conducted from Aug. 1991 to Feb. 1992, di
rected to: 1) provincial and territorial epidemiologists/directors of
STD control, asking about program organization; and 2) 154 local healt
h units/provincially run PN programs, asking about practice patterns o
f STD partner notification. Conclusions: In Canada, STD PN by public h
ealth agencies is routinely practised in most provinces. PN efforts va
ry by the STD; less PN effort goes to chlamydia despite a high burden
of illness; HIV PN is frequently perceived to be within the responsibi
lity of the physician. For STDs with higher PN effort, the preferred m
ethod is provider referral. Targeting is seldom utilized, and there ar
e little available data at a local level monitoring even process measu
res of effectiveness.