Antenatal Sexual health Kit (ASK) - Self-paced

Course overview

Sexually transmissible infections (STIs) are on the rise across Australia and Queensland. STIs can increase risk of miscarriage, preterm labour, and many other problems during pregnancy.  The number of congenital syphilis cases in Queensland over the last 10 years has increased. Syphilis has concerning health impacts on all that are infected; however, it has a potentially fatal outcome on foetuses, neonates, and infants. For this reason, the ASK course has been developed in a bid to increase awareness about the importance of sexual health assessments throughout pregnancy, to reduce the impact on the foetus, with further education on contact tracing and partner notification once an STI has been detected. 

The ASK course increases the knowledge base of antenatal service providers in the areas of sexual health history assessment and contact tracing specific to pregnancy. The course aims to provide resources and tools to support GPs and antenatal clinicians in providing appropriate care aimed at reducing the incidence of syphilis in pregnancy in line with the Queensland Health Syphilis in Pregnancy (SiP) Guidelines. This service is free to all antenatal service providers and is endorsed by Queensland Health.

Course Outcomes:

Participants will:

• Learn how to apply a sexual health history assessment in practice
• Learn strategies to overcome barriers in a sexual health history assessment
• Develop skills of contact tracing and its importance to apply in practice
• Learn to interpret the Queensland Health Maternity and Neonatal Clinical Guidelines: Syphilis in Pregnancy
• Identify where key resources are available to aid with contact tracing method.

The online ASK course is multifaceted and consists of:

• A 30-minute presentation
• Online learning modules
• Podcast series of 4
• Online resource hub
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)