Public Health Madison & Dane County officials recently launched a program to use dating apps and social media to notify people of possible exposure to sexually transmitted infections.
“The dating landscape is really changing,” said Naomi Clear, the department’s partner services coordinator. “This is a really important way for us to adapt to the current climate, meet our clients where they are and make our services more accessible.”
For decades, health officials have helped people confidentially notify their sexual partners of possible HIV and other STI exposures, often through phone calls.
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“Now, a lot of people are meeting their partners online, and they might only talk to that person on the app … and not even have a phone number to reach them,” Clear said.
The new program, which launched in May, will allow officials to also contact people through phone apps, such as Instagram and the LGBTQ+ app SCRUFF, Clear said. Department staff use usernames and IDs provided by the infected person to identify the correct contacts and arrange a phone call, asking to discuss a “health matter.” In the call, the person who tested positive for the sexually transmitted infection is not identified.
“We take privacy really seriously,” Clear said. “We never say anything about the person who exposed them.”
More than 200 people were diagnosed with a STI in Dane County in February, according to the department’s most recent tally. The majority of those cases were chlamydia and gonorrhea.
“STIs are more common than people might think,” Clear said. “Our goal here is to reduce the spread.”
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