“Don’t Sweat It, Get Tested” – NHS Essex Chlamydia Screening

The first event in an exciting new campaign to increase awareness of chlamydia was an overwhelming success.

NHS South East Essex launched the ‘Don’t Sweat It, Get Tested’ campaign on Southend High Street on Saturday 15 January to raise awareness of Chlamydia , the most common sexually transmitted infection amongst young people under 25.

The evening event, with its distinctive campaign message and images, offered young people the opportunity to find out more about the infection, with many of them taking up the testing opportunity. The event outreach workers also gave out wristbands, keyrings, leaflets and lollipops promoting the www.ruclear.nhs.uk website.

Simon Ford, chlamydia lead for NHS South East Essex explains:

“This is a great launch for the ‘Don’t Sweat It, Get Tested’ campaign. Chlamydia is one of the most common STIs and these events will encourage young people to find out more about testing for it. With more events planned in January at SEEVIC College, South Essex College and on Southend High Street, the campaign will continue to make an impact across south east Essex.”

The event was also popular among those on a night out in Southend, with a huge number of young people visiting the distinctive tent.

Jay, 19, from Southend said: “This is a great idea – it takes the pressure out of going to get tested.”

Similarly, Amanda, 22, from Hockley added: “Everyone should get tested and this is a brilliant way of doing it.”

And Lee, 20, of Rayleigh highlighted how this had changed his viewpoint: “I’ve never thought about getting tested, but now I taken the test there’s one less thing to be worried about.”

To find out more about the ‘Don’t Sweat It’ campaign, or any further information about chlamydia, simply visit www.ruclear.nhs.uk today. For more advice and to keep up-to-date with your nearest events, you can follow @cash_news on Twitter or visit their pages on Facebook.

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