Public Health
Update
COVID-19 Surveillance Reveals Benefits of Opt-Out HIV Screening in Emergency Departments BY: DELECIA VELASQUEZ-STUMP, MPH & HEMAL PARIKH, MPH
Throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic we have seen decreases in the cases of disease across the board. In fact, in 2020, San Joaquin County (SJC) saw a decrease in almost every reportable disease except for one: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). SJC has seen a steady increase in new HIV cases since 2017. As of April 2021, there has been 41 new HIV cases compared to 26 last year and 19 in 2019. One way that the SJC emergency departments Disease . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HIV 71. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syphilis, primary and secondary. . . . . . Chlamydia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gonorrhea. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syphilis, congenital. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2017 . . . . 72. . . . . . . 376 . . . . . 3977 . . . . 1360 . . . . 15. . . . . . .
2018 . . . . 2019. . . . 82. . . . . . . 89. . . . . . 275. . . . . . 201. . . . . 4313 . . . . 4803. . . . 1398 . . . . 1708. . . . 27. . . . . . . 44. . . . . .
HIV may present similar symptoms to many other viral infections, such as COVID-19, but rather than being transmitted via airborne droplets, it is transmitted by direct contact from infected bodily
50
SAN JOAQUIN PHYSICIAN
(ED’s) can help end the HIV epidemic is to start implementing routine “opt-out” screening. Opt-out screening is the stigma-reducing method of notifying a patient that an HIV screening will be conducted during the other standard preemptive tests and they have the right to decline the test.4 The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends testing all health care patients for HIV using an “opt-out” approach.1 2020. . . % Change 8.5%. . . . . . . . . . . . . 173. . . . . . . -13.9% 3928. . . . . . -18.2% 1055. . . . . . -38.2% 26 . . . . . . . . -40.9%
fluids. These two viruses are very different but one of their first similarities is the psychological toll it has caused in the community. Although we are still learning about COVID-19, it is known to
SUMMER 2021
