Rutgers University School of Nursing Receives $12.5 Million to Improve STI Testing

The Rutgers University School of Nursing recently received $12.5 million to improve sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing and treatment among people living with or at risk for HIV. In the US, STIs are on the rise with a record-breaking 2.3 million cases of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia diagnosed in 2017.

Rutgers HIV expert John Nelson, PhD, CNS, CPNP, principal investigator for the new $12.5 million initiative, tells Nursing.Rutgers.edu, “Common STIs are not only a major health concern on their own, they are also known to increase the risk of both transmitting and acquiring HIV…Despite national recommendations, routine STI testing and prevention are often lacking in primary care for people living with HIV. Now, with the ongoing opioid epidemic, risky behaviors associated with substance use, development of antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea, and decreased condom use by high-risk individuals, we’re facing a perfect storm related to the spread of common STIs.”

Rutgers School of Nursing is aiming to help reverse this trend with a new federally funded project that will work to improve STI screening and treatment practices in some of the nation’s hardest hit regions, especially among people living with or at risk for HIV.

The project, Improving Sexually Transmitted Infection Screening and Treatment among People Living with or at Risk for HIV, was awarded to Rutgers School of Nursing’s François-Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center. The $12,417,717 award is funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

To learn more about the Rutgers University School of Nursing’s $12.5 million award to help improve STI testing, visit here.