EMBARRASSED young people who are too shy to go for a chlamydia check-up can now text for tests.
Liverpool NHS Provider Services and NHS Knowsley have created the service.
Young people can text Liverpool or Knowsley – depending on where they live – followed by their name, age and address to 80800.
Within two weeks, they will receive a discreetly packaged postal kit, and can then choose how they get their results back.
If the test is positive, the patient can pick up their free treatment, and can have former partners contacted anonymously to warn them they may have been put at risk.
Dr Paula Grey, Director of Public Health for Liverpool, said: “Chlamydia is a bacterial infection which has no symptoms in at least 70% of women and 50% of men.
“If left untreated, it can develop into serious conditions such as pelvic inflammatory disease, which can progress to ectopic pregnancy and infertility.
“Sexually active women, aged under 25, are most at risk of chlamydia, while men who are aged between 20 and 30 are most at risk.”
