Counselling for STI patients crucial

WHILE Covi-19 has been the dominant health story for 2020, cases of couples that divorce or separate over sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are not new and remain frequent.

Infecting a partner with an STI constantly leads to breakups and fights among couples.

We are regularly reading about people (usually women) complaining about their partners deliberately infecting them with STIs.

Around 10 000 STIs are recorded in Harare every quarter and they are a serious cause for concern.

Of concern also is the fact that more women are infected with STIs than men, at least according to the statistics.

Are more women infected or men are not getting treatment?

The cases of STIs in the capital keep rising and it is shocking to note that Harare records some of the highest number of cases across the country considering the city has more access to sex education and health institutions than other provinces.

Add the fact that there are, on average, over 2 000 repeat cases of STIs every quarter where the same people who had been treated earlier are infected again by an STI and you have clear evidence that people are not learning from their mistakes.

The counselling given to STI patients should increase if these recurrent statistics are anything to go by.

People should be taught not to be over-dependent on contraceptives like condoms for protection.

It is a fact that no contraceptive is 100 percent reliable and people who wish to protect themselves from STIs and or plan their families must be aware of this fact.

Most contraceptives are fairly reliable — some more reliable than others while some depend on individuals — but they must be used properly and consistently.

The condom for example — which is the contraceptive relevant to preventing STIs — has a two percent failure rate, when used properly that is.

The failure rate is even higher when it comes to the female condom as five women in 100 who use a female condom will get pregnant in a year.

The other 95 will only not fall pregnant if they consistently use the condoms properly. The same applies to contracting STIs.

So people must always know that these contraceptives are not absolutely effective and a woman can still get an STI or fall pregnant even if they or their partner is using some form of protection.

As a result, anyone who engages in sexual intercourse, using whatever type of protection must know that their actions can lead to both pregnancy and or the transmission of STIs or HIV to their partner.