How do you access at-home STI testing?

Many people choose not to be tested for STIs in the absence of symptoms. Even after the onset of symptoms, as much as one-third of the population delays testing and treatment. The reason? Fear of being judged and ridiculed. 

Social stigma is one of the biggest barriers to early STI intervention. Ash Wellness is committed to helping our partners’ patients receive care on time through at-home diagnostic testing.

So, how do you, the patient, access at-home STI testing?

How remote healthcare and at-home diagnostic testing works

Virtual home care is an excellent way to avail healthcare services remotely. If you feel nervous about STI testing at a clinic or hospital, at-home diagnostic testing lets you swab in the comfort of your own home. Important sexual health advocacy groups like the American Academy of Family Physicians deem telehealth platforms essential for making sexual health services available to a larger population.

Here’s how the process works: 

1. Request an at-home STI test through a remote or in-person care provider. 
2. Swab and mail your at-home STI test to the lab. 
3. Technicians upload results to a portal within 1-2 days.
4. Review results with your remote or in-person healthcare provider. 

What should you do if you test positive on an at-home STI test? 

Contracting an STI is not shameful or embarrassing. Like any other infection, simple medical intervention can heal you and reduce spread. Both brick-and-mortar clinics and at-home diagnostics with analysis from telemedicine labs and telehealth providers offer discreet testing and treatment of STIs. 

Can you trust at-home health tests before opting for treatment? Absolutely. 

A recent study published by the National Institute of Health Research shows the accuracy of at-home STI tests:

• At-home health testing picked up 98% of pooled and single swabs infections for gonorrhea.
• At-home diagnostic testing picked up 90% of infections in pooled swabs, and had a higher chance of being picked up in separate tests.
  

If you’ve tested positive, get in touch with a trusted physician/health clinic for treatment. Some in-person clinics ask you to deliver at-home test results when you book an appointment. This can feel distressing for some people. Social stigma around STIs makes patients feel unsafe, anxious, and unwilling to visit a health clinic in person. But there’s no shame in having an STI and getting help! In 2021, CDC estimated that 1 in 5 people in the U.S. had a sexually transmitted infection. 

Note: The CDC advises you to get in touch with a general care physician even for asymptomatic cases. No matter how benign, untreated STIs can cause severe damage to your reproductive system and even end up causing infertility. They are also linked to higher chances of contracting or spreading HIV. 

How Ash Wellness helps with at-home diagnostic testing

Ash Wellness simplifies at-home diagnostic testing. We partner with healthcare systems to deliver at-home STI testing to patients. Our seamless CLIA/CAP lab integration ensures that all at-home health tests are analyzed by industry lab technicians, and uploaded to our partners' white-labeled portals for review by medical professionals. Under our 360-degree care program, we partner with a number of national insurance providers to make the process as hassle-free as possible for our partners and their patients. 

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Providers can learn more about our comprehensive Primary Care solution and how it can help deliver discreet, at-home STI testing to patients.