Yellowknife pop-up clinic to test for STIs amid ongoing syphilis outbreak
CBC
Nearly four years after first declaring a syphilis outbreak, the number of cases continues to climb in the N.W.T.
About 250 cases have been detected since public health declared the outbreak in August 2019.
In response, health officials will set up a pop-up clinic at the primary care centre in Yellowknife this Saturday, to test for STIs.
The process includes questions about sexual history to determine the best kind of test to be done. But Nancy MacNeill, who works in health promotion for the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority, says that shouldn't intimidate residents or discourage them from coming in.
"We really want to encourage people to talk more openly about STIs," she said. "People have sex, STIs happen, it's OK. Most of them are treatable. These ones are extremely treatable, and quickly."
MacNeill says residents in all communities can contact their local health centre for STI testing.
The N.W.T.'s rate of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis have been among the highest in Canada, and well above the national average.
Last year, the territory introduced rapid blood tests for syphilis, which can give preliminary results in as little as five minutes.
Rebecca White, a sexual health nurse in the N.W.T., says the tests are great for finding positive cases, which would then require further testing and monitoring.
But negative results don't necessarily mean a person does not have syphilis.
An infection can take up to 12 weeks to be detected, or it could also have been too long since infection.
While it may no longer be infectious at that later stage, syphilis can still cause damage to the brain, heart and other organs if left untreated. Expectant moms can also transfer the infection to their baby.
The rate of babies born with syphilis is growing across the country.
"That's one of the reasons we take syphilis so seriously," said White.