WISH Newsletter
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To request a hard copy, please email - shwln@health.scot.nhs.uk.
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Find out about the Sexual Health and Wellbeing Network on our network pages.
Setting the Scene – Sexually Transmitted Infections, including HIV in Scotland, 2004
Extended Surveillance of Gonorrhoea in Scotland 2003
Homophobic Bullying Report
Coming Out – A Woman's Guide
Websites of interest
Female Genital Mutilation – seminar report
Parents Caught in the Crossfire, 26 October 2005
Developing Closer Links Between Education and Sexual Health Services
Contraceptive use data
UK Health Check – latest from the Office for National Statistics
Setting the Scene – Sexually Transmitted Infections, including HIV, in Scotland, 2004
An HIV/STI report for Scotland has been published jointly between Information Services Division and Health Protection Scotland on the same day as the UK report. This is a web-based report and contains text, tables and figures highlighting issues relating to HIV and STI prevalence and trends in Scotland. The intention is to publish this report annually – to access Setting the Scene, please visit www.show.scot.nhs.uk/scieh/infectious/inftransmitted.html (external link)
Additional supplementary data tables are also available here: www.isdscotland.org/isd/info3.jsp?p_applic=CCC&p_service=Content.show&pContentID=991& (external link).
Extended Surveillance of Gonorrhoea in Scotland 2003
A national surveillance of gonococcal infection seen in GUM Clinics in Scotland in 2003 was conducted by the Scottish Neisseria Gonorrhoea Reference Laboratory (SNGRL). This survey, which combined demographic, behavioural, clinical and laboratory data, identified compliance with the auditable outcome measures described in the national guideline on the management of gonorrhoea in adults. Key Scottish findings indicate that young women aged 16-19 were the highest proportion of female infections whilst young men aged 20-24 represented greatest proportion of heterosexual male infections. Compared to England and Wales, Scottish data recorded more heterosexual patients aged 45 and over.
Six times as many ethnic minority people living in England had positive diagnoses compared to those in Scotland. Chlamydia was the most common co-existing infection in all patients in Scotland and in England and Wales.
These findings highlight the importance of extended surveillance for gonorrhoea (which, combines laboratory, demographic and behavioural characteristics) on guiding appropriately targeted interventions for the control of gonorrhoea in Scotland.
RESOURCES
Homophobic Bullying Report
This is a link to a report by Sophie Johnston (Fusion Volunteer) into the experiences of homophobic bullying incidents. 76 young people between the ages of 13 and 19 were interviewed about their experiences, 58 of whom identified as LGBT.
To download a copy of the report please visit the website of LGBT Youth (external link)
Coming Out – A Woman's Guide
The LGBT Centre for Health & Wellbeing has produced Coming Out – A Woman’s Guide for women aged 30 plus who are questioning their sexual orientation.
Written by a group of lesbian and bisexual women from Glasgow and Edinburgh, it addresses some of the initial concerns of someone who may be questioning their sexual orientation including – What does it mean to be lesbian or bisexual?; Coming out to yourself; Coming out to others: including parents, male partners, children; Religion and sexuality; I've come out, what next?; Sex and me; Information and advice for family and friends – written by Parent's Enquiry; Contact information – LGBT groups and organisations – useful websites and resources.
Please contact the Centre on 0131 523 1100 or email - admin@lgbthealth.org.uk to order your copy.
LGBT Youth Scotland have also produced a coming out guide for young women. Order your own copy online (external link).
Websites of interest
Healthy Respect (external link)
www.healthyrespect.co.uk is the new web link to Healthy Respect, the national health demonstration project on young people's sexual health.
Your Sexual Health (external link)
This is the new website of NHS Argyll and Clyde. This site offers tips on all aspects of sexual health and pregnancy and provides important and essential information on sexual health no matter the age. It includes a self-diagnosis tool for those who are concerned they may have caught an infection as well as a downloadable directory of services so that users can find their nearest clinic and its opening times.
Youth Web (external link)
A website designed by young people in Leicestershire using text, sound and animated digital artwork to look at issues that affect young people everywhere. Managed by Soft Touch Community Arts, pages in the site have been contributed by local groups including Apex Leicester Project, Moat Community College, Leicester African Caribbean Centre, Girls Breakout, The Friday Verve Group and Youth Voice. Pages include 'RU Out 2 Night?' – a set of four animated cartoon stories looking at choices faced by teenage girls, 'Respect' – showing young people how to respect other cultures, 'Wasted' – stories about alcohol and drugs, 'Dealing with Exam Stress', and 'Verve'; which highlights issues for young people with disability.
SEXUAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING NETWORK EVENT REPORTS
Female Genital Mutilation – seminar report
Last year NHS Greater Glasgow Health Promotion Department and the Learning Network jointly hosted a one-day seminar to raise awareness of the issues around FGM and how practitioners could address this sensitive topic.
Parents Caught in the Crossfire, 26 October 2005
The summary report of the proceedings at our event held in October. Presentations and workshops highlighted how the quality of time spent between parents and their children impacted on future relationships and the positive choices made in reducing 'at risk' behaviours, what parents and carers thought on what should be included as part of sex and relationships education and how they could be supported to be co-educators of sex and relationships education which they saw as an essential task of parenting.
Parents Caught in the Crossfire Summary Report
Parents Caught in the Crossfire Presentations
Developing Closer Links Between Education and Sexual Health Services
The fifth seminar in the series of participative seminars was held on Tuesday 17 May 2005 in the Teacher's Building, Glasgow.
The summary report for the seminar and slide show presentations can be found on the Network's Events and Seminar Reports pages [TBC].
Contraceptive use data
The latest results from Living in Britain: the 2002 General Household Survey show that almost 3 out of 4 women aged 16 to 49 use contraception, a trend that has changed little since the mid 1980s.
But there are differences in contraceptive types: sterilisation is more popular among older women (aged 45 to 49) and less popular in younger age groups (aged 25 to 39). Compared to previous years, fewer young people are using contraception (reduced from 61% to 41%) with absence of sexual relationship being cited as the main reason.
An increased number of young men, but not women, said that they used condoms both to prevent pregnancy and infection.
Available from the Office for National Statistics (external link)
UK Health Check – latest from the Office for National Statistics
Analysis of statistics from the constituent countries of the UK and between the UK and other countries show noticeable variations. Included in this are sexual health comparisons, for example, England has the highest rate of all STIs – the rate for gonorrhoea in men is more than twice that for Scotland and Wales and for women four times that in Scotland.
United Kingdom Health Statistics, 2006 edition
Previous WISH newsletters
WISH Newsletter Spring 2006
WISH Newsletter Summer 2005
WISH Newsletter Spring 2005
WISH Newsletter Autumn/Winter 2004
WISH Newsletter Summer 2004
WISH Newsletter Spring 2004
WISH Newsletter Winter 2003