Use your browser's BACK button to return to your page of origin.
Georgia prenatal care providers' perceptions of barriers to sexually
transmitted disease screening.
Southern Medical Journal 2003;96:845-849.
Barnes RS, Anderson LA, Weisbord JS, Koumans E, Toomey KE.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Evidence suggests that sexually transmitted disease (STD) screening
during pregnancy is not optimal. No published studies have systematically
examined barriers that hinder routine STD screening. This study examines
prenatal care providers' perceptions about barriers to routine STD screening
of pregnant women. METHODS: Using a conceptual framework, four a priori barrier
categories were developed: provider, patient, organizational, and structural.
Responses to a question on barriers to STD screening in a 1998 mail survey
of Georgia prenatal care providers were qualitatively classified into one
of these categories. RESULTS: Of the 293 providers who responded, 71% identified
structural barriers, with 52% citing inadequate reimbursement. These respondents
were most likely to name barriers categorized as structural, not patient,
provider, or organization issues. CONCLUSION: Efforts to improve STD screening
of pregnant women should include a focus on structural level interventions,
such as instituting health care policies that provide adequate reimbursement
for routine STD screening during pregnancy.