Gonorrhea & 
Chlamydia Toolkit for 
Healthcare Providers

Like many sexually transmitted diseases (STD) or sexually transmitted infections (STI), gonorrhea and chlamydia rates are on the rise. In addition, antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea is increasing in parts of the United States. Like you, we are concerned.

We Need Your Help

Health care providers can play a critically important role in helping to reduce gonorrhea and chlamydia in suburban Cook County by taking the following actions:

Report. It’s The Law

Test and treat.

Encourage gonorrhea and chlamydia testing in any patients who may be at high risk, including:

1. Gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men (MSM)
2. Sexually active women under the age of 25
3. Pregnant women
4. Patients who use ‘dating’ or ‘hookup’ apps like Jack’d, Grindr, Adam4Adam, etc.

Always follow CDC’s Treatment Guidelines and inform patients to abstain from sexual activity for 7 days after treatment is completed. The 2021 STD Treatment Guidelines app is available for download on iPhone  and Android  devices.

Gonorrhea is developing resistance to the antibiotics used to treat it. In fact, we are down to one recommended effective class of antibiotics.

The recommended treatment regimen for uncomplicated gonorrhea is:

Ceftriaxone 500 mg IM in a single dose

Retest patients with gonorrhea after 90 days to ensure they are not reinfected.

Chlamydia is the most frequently reported infectious disease in the U.S. Prevalence is highest in people under the age of 25. Annual screening for females under 25 years old is encouraged.
The recommended treatment regimen for chlamydia is:
Doxycycline 100 mg orally twice a day for 7 days if not pregnant or Azithromycin 1 gm orally in a single dose if pregnant.

Prevent Reinfection

Prevent reinfection by notifying and treating partners.

Consider Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT)

If a partner of a patient diagnosed with gonorrhea and/or chlamydia cannot be linked to evaluation and treatment in a timely fashion, consider EPT. EPT is the clinical practice of treating the sex partners of patients diagnosed with chlamydia or gonorrhea by providing prescriptions or medications to the patient to take to his/her partner without the health care provider first examining the partner. EPT is recommended for partners of gonorrhea, as not treating these partners is significantly more harmful than the use of EPT for gonorrhea.