“The Yes Means TEST is really the national initiative to empower young people who have said yes to having sex to also say yes to getting tested,” women’s health expert Dr. Maria Trent of Johns Hopkins, told BlackDoctor.org
“Sexually transmitted diseases are on the rise nationally for young people – including treatable diseases like chlamydia and gonorrhea. So, it’s important that young people know that they can get tested and treated and empower them to seek care to get around this issue with their primary care providers,” Dr. Trent explained.
“But, the key is young people aren’t getting tested at rates that we’d expect. So, this campaign [which targets 18-24-year olds] is really to encourage them to take control of their health.”
Many STDs may not have symptoms, meaning you can have one and have no idea. And it doesn’t matter how you’re hooking up – they can be transmitted through vaginal, oral or anal sex – even genital skin-to-skin contact.
Dr. Trent also attributes the rise in STDs to “a discomfort” in the United States when it comes to talking about sex.
“Often times young people are reluctant to disclose their sexual behavior in the context of medical visits – if they don’t feel like it’s a safe place to do that or if they feel like they are going to be judged,” said Dr. Trent. She added that, “Sometimes, for the younger cohort, they’re concerned about cost – but I think that this campaign does a nice job of really giving young people a resource.”