Clinics are unable to cope, say MPs

A report by the influential Commons health committee has found the NHS is no longer able to cope with the record number of people with STIs.

It has called for urgent government action to tackle what it describes as a public health crisis.

The report reveals that the number of people being diagnosed with infections is continuing to rocket.

Record rates

One in 10 young people are now infected with chlamydia, which can cause infertility in women. Syphilis rates have jumped by 500% in the last six years, while gonorrhoea infections have doubled.

More people are also being diagnosed with HIV than ever before. Around 6,500 people were told they had the disease last year.

Infections rising HIV: Up 26% Chlamydia: Up 10% Gonorrhoea: Up 8% Syphilis: Up 143% Genital herpes: Up 6% Genital warts: Up 3% 2001 figures compared with previous year 'I was told to wait 12 days'

The report found that the NHS is failing to address or even recognise the problem.

It says sexual health clinics are ill-equipped to cope and are turning away hundreds of patients each week.

It also found that clinics are using out-of-date equipment to diagnose some STIs.

The report blamed a lack of political direction and under-funding over many years for the crisis.

MPs said the government needed to double the amount of money it spends on sexual health to bring services up to acceptable standards.

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They called for new national guidelines to ensure sexual health becomes a priority for the NHS, saying the government's Strategy for Sexual Health did not go far enough.

They demanded maximum waits of 48 hours for patients. Many patients are forced to wait as long as six weeks before they are seen by specialists.

They called for an urgent review of the staffing needs of clinics and the immediate introduction of a national screening programme for chlamydia. The programme is currently being piloted in just 10 sites across England.

MPs recommended sweeping changes to the way schools teach sex education. They said many young people may not have "even basic factual knowledge about sex and sexual health".

'Public health crisis'

Committee chairman and Labour MP David Hinchliffe insisted the situation had reached crisis point.

"I do not use the word lightly, but during the course of the inquiry, it has become plain that with sexual health we are looking at a public health crisis."

He said urgent action is needed to tackle the problem.

"It is vital we commit ourselves to prioritising sexual health."

The NHS is working to reverse the upward trends in infections Public Health Minister Hazel Blears 'My clinic struggles to cope'

Public Health Minister Hazel Blears said the government was concerned with the rise in STIs.

But she said the national strategy, published in 2001, would deliver improvements.

"This is a long-term strategy aimed at modernising and improving sexual health services over the next decade.

"There is no quick fix but the NHS is working to reverse the upward trends in infections, tackling inequalities and modernising services."

Shadow Health Secretary Dr Liam Fox accused ministers of being irresponsible.

"The crisis in sexual health is a ticking time bomb. The government's woeful failure to take any meaningful action puts patients at risk and is hugely irresponsible."

Rates of sexually transmitted disease, including HIV/Aids, are astronomical Sandra Gidley MP

Liberal Democrat MP Sandra Gidley, who sits on the health committee, said: "Rates of sexually transmitted disease, including HIV/Aids, are astronomical.

"The government must take that issue seriously, and put the resources into both health and education services."

Sexual health agencies also called for the government to do more.

Andrew Ridley of the Terrence Higgins Trust said: "We need political leadership, NHS priority, adequate resources and good sex education for every young person.

"The committee doesn't use words like 'crisis' lightly, and we ignore their recommendations at our peril."

Dr Vivienne Nathanson of the BMA said: "We are shocked by the statistics and soaring rates of sexually transmitted infections.

"The government needs to tackle this issue as the UK is on the brink of a sexual health crisis."

Rest of Europe

The increase in sex diseases in the UK has been mirrored in other European countries.

For instance, in France the number of cases of gonorrhoea rose by 170% in just one year.

However, some countries have dealt with the threat far more effectively than the UK.

For instance, in Sweden hundreds of clinics have been set up to provide easy access to counselling and tests for young people.

As a result, the country has experienced no explosion in STIs, and teenage pregnancy rates are low.

In a country of 9 million people, there were just 252 recorded cases of gonorrhoea in 2002.