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Symposiums

SS5.3 Social Hygiene Service – a Crossover of Clinical Service and 10:45 Theatre 2
Public Health

Social Hygiene Clinic – a Platform for Sexually Transmitted Infection Control and Prevention
Wong ASC HOSPITAL AUTHORITY CONVENTION 2017
Social Hygiene Service, Centre for Health Protection, Department of Health, The Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV are among the most widespread and harmful infectious diseases, exacting
substantial social and economic burden on families and communities worldwide. They remain to be important causes of
morbidity and mortality due to common complications (WHO, 2014). In Hong Kong, about 12,000 reported STIs diagnosed in
Social Hygiene Service (SHS) annually include syphilis, gonorrhoea, non-gonococcal urethritis/non-specific genital infection
(of which the most common pathogen identified as chlamydia trachomatis), genital wart and herpes genitalis. Sexual contact
is the major mode of transmission.
The SHS under the Public Health Services Branch of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health
(DH) is responsible for the management, prevention and control of sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Services of SHS
include providing diagnostic assessment, treatment and care; promoting health and preventing STD through individual health
counselling and other health education activities and tracing contacts for investigation and defaulters for treatment and
follow-up.

The SHS undertakes the mission to strengthen STI prevention and control in Hong Kong. Particular strategies are taken to
develop and uphold standards in STI management and introduce measures to curb the spread of STI. Local STD programme
is composed of two complementary components: clinical and public health programme. The aims of clinical programme
are to deliver high quality clinical management to people with STIs via outpatient clinics throughout the territory and to
maintain a framework on which builds the public health programme through minimal hindrance to access to care by people
exposed to the risk of STIs, provision of high standard medical treatment to STIs, appropriate counselling, and with good
support rendered by the Public Health Laboratory Service Branch of CHP. For the public health programme, its aims are to
monitor epidemiology of STIs, and develop and conduct preventive interventions by means of continual clinic-based STI
and behavioural surveillance, time honoured contact and defaulter tracing system, outreach health promotion, professional
support to private sector and continuing medical education to medical professionals, partnership with other stakeholders in
STI/HIV prevention.
Effective STI control and prevention relies on relevant behavioural risk assessment, accurate diagnosis, prompt and effective
treatment, health and safer sex education, contact tracing and appropriate follow-up. The SHS offers a user-friendly, easily
accessible and comprehensive service in STI control and prevention to the community. Wednesday, 17 May

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