Enhanced Syphilis Response (ESR)

Enhanced Syphilis Response

There is an ongoing outbreak of infectious syphilis affecting young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, predominantly aged between 15 and 29 years, living in northern, central and southern Australia.

In response, NACCHO, Flinders University and the Australian Government Department of Health are working together to coordinate a $21.2 million response over 4 years (2017-18 to 2020-2021) to fund an augmented health workforce and point-of-care testing (PoCT) in targeted Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS) within the affected outbreak regions.

This will address the disproportionately high rates of syphilis and other Blood-Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmissible Infections in regional and remote Indigenous communities.

The use of PoCT and a ‘test and treat’ model reduces time to initiating treatment and contact tracing, minimises individuals lost to follow-up and provides access to testing for those uncomfortable or unable to have venipuncture performed. The Determine Syphilis TP™ test is currently the only syphilis POC test registered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration in Australia and has been selected for use in the outbreak response.

For more information please contact the NACCHO Enhanced Syphilis Response National Coordinator, call 02 6246 9324, or visit the Australian Government Department of Health’s Infectious syphilis outbreak page.

Evaluation of NACCHO’s role under ESR

Blueprint for the Future: Evaluation of NACCHO’s role under the Enhanced Syphilis Response February 2021

In this report key elements of the ESR model have been identified to inform the public health response to syphilis and other STIs, BBVs and communicable diseases in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in the future.

Syphilis Outbreak Online Training

Free accredited online professional development training for health workers in regions affected by the ongoing outbreak of infectious syphilis among young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in regions of Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia and South Australia. This training provides important information for any health workers including Aboriginal Health Practitioners and Aboriginal Health Workers, doctors, nurses and midwives.
Training content includes:

Epidemiology
Testing and management
Current outbreak
Contact tracing
Outbreak responses
Interpreting results
Clinical stages
Notification

For more information visit: https://ashm.org.au/training/syphilis-outbreak-training-website-online-learning/

Young Deadly Syphilis Free Campaign

The Young Deadly Syphilis Free Campaign is a multi-strategy STI awareness-raising campaign, developed in response to the ongoing syphilis outbreak affecting regional and remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in:

northern and western Queensland, including Torres Strait Islands
the Northern Territory
the Kimberley region of Western Australia
the Far North and Western regions of South Australia.

The campaign has been developed by the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), in consultation with the Multijurisdictional Syphilis Outbreak Group of the Communicable Diseases Network Australia.
Now in its third phase, the campaign is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health(currently funded to 30 June 2021).
For more information visit the Young Deadly Free website here.