At a glance
Jurisdictions are leaning into targeted STI prevention and treatment strategies by focusing on the needs and interests of local communities and delivering partnerships invested in meeting people where they are.
August 2023
A new partnership between the Richmond and Henrico Health Districts (RHHD) of the Virginia Department of Health and Bremo Pharmacy is using a unique provider model to create additional access to sexually transmitted infection (STI) health care and prevention — helping ease patient demand and decreasing wait times for services. The partnership, which grew out of a previous collaboration focused on COVID-19 vaccinations, pivoted in early-2023 to providing STI treatment and prevention services directly through the pharmacy, options that would usually be fulfilled at traditional RHHD health department sites. Services offered include STI screening and testing, expedited partner therapy, and second- and third-dose benzathine penicillin G injectable treatment for syphilis infection. Most clients are usually in and out in about five minutes. With increased accessibility a priority, the program serves underinsured and uninsured patients, offers transportation to those who need it, and provides help from Spanish-speaking staff. Since February 2023, the partnership has completed over 70 successful referrals for STI treatment. And leaning into the ongoing role of building community trust, the program recently added Hope Pharmacy — a local, minority-owned business serving the surrounding predominantly African American community — as a new partner.