Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) are a growing public health concern, particularly for women and girls, who experience disproportionately high rates and rising incidence. Barriers such as cost, transportation and geographic access, and appointment availability limit access to timely STI care. For those who do access family planning care, integrating STI testing into comprehensive visits can reduce the need for repeat appointments and improve health and wellbeing.

Using the 2015-2019 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), we assessed the prevalence of missed opportunities for STI testing—in other words, the extent to which those who received contraceptive care in the last year with clinical indications for STI testing, did not receive it.

Our analysis found that one in four contraceptive clients for whom testing was warranted did not receive testing. At the bivariate level, those who paid with public insurance and received care at Title X facilities had lower odds of missed opportunities. However, after adjusting for covariates, these factors were no longer significant. Missed opportunities were more likely among adolescents and older clients, non-Hispanic White clients, those who are married or cohabitating, and clients without children. Notably, receiving patient-centered contraceptive care did not significantly reduce the likelihood of experiencing a missed opportunity for STI testing.

Following the presentation of these results, we will engage participants in a discussion to collectively interpret the results, to explore clinician and patient barriers to initiating testing, and brainstorm what patient-centered STI care interventions could be implemented in the context of contraceptive care.