If you've already got an STD, an e-card can't hurt

"It's not what you brought to the party, it's what you left with ... I left with an STD. You might have, too. Get checked out soon."

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know I had STDs when we were together. You should get tested."

Crass messages? Perhaps. Unwanted? Definitely. But for people already exposed to a sexually transmitted disease, the real damage has been done. So they might as well be told -- even (or perhaps especially) electronically and anonymously. This seems to be the current thinking anyway -- by both senders and, now, by researchers.

In an assessment published today in PLoS Medicine, public health educators analyzed the effects of inSPOT.org, a website launched in 2004, that allows sex partners to be notified by e-card of their possible exposure to an STD and directed to information about that particular disease and about local testing. Only a limited number of cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego, and states have signed on. But the analysis' authors say the site has unrealized national and international potential.

More than 750 people visit the site daily, and more than 30,000 people have sent more than 49,500 e-cards since the site's launch. The cards contain space for a personal message, though if someone is resorting to an e-card, exercising that option may be moot.

In trying to gauge the effectiveness of the site, the authors looked at disease rates and the rates at which recipients clicked on links connecting them to test-site information. An average of 26.8% of recipients in 2006 and 28.5% in 2007 "clicked-through" to get STD testing information. Not stellar numbers perhaps, but they suggest that at least some people are getting the message.

The authors write:

"While inSPOT was never intended to replace traditional partner notification by public health investigators, it has emerged as a complement to those services."

Of the 23,594 cards sent in 2006 and 2007, 15.4% were for gonorrhea exposure, 14.9% for syphilis, and 9.3% for HIV. A lot -- 48.8% -- were for "other" diseases, such as crabs, scabies and hepatitis.

And in case you were wondering, the researchers add:

"While we prepared for the possibility of misuse of the site by people sending e-cards maliciously, fewer than 10 recipients have reported receiving a card in error."

-- Tami Dennis

Comments

[Rod]

What on earth are they thinking? I don't see any way this can become popular without spammers and pranksters discovering it and rendering it worse than useless.

[Josh]

I seriously doubt only 10 people have reported receiving cards in error. I've personally received two e-cards from this site intended as jokes. And quite upset by it, I emailed the contact address given on the site, but no one ever responded. So I sent another message complaining that their site was being misused, but, again, no response.

So, to the people who own and run the website, you guys should really do better and preventing the misuse of your site (and perhaps returning an email). I think it's tasteless to send an e-card like this even if it's intended to cowardly inform a person of a health issue, but it's reprehensible to send one in jest. And it's not much better to provide the tools to send one and do nothing to attempt to prevent it from occuring. If there was any justice in the world, the owners of this site should be held responsible for all the unnecessary medical testing that was ordered through the misuse of their site.

As far as I'm concerned, if you're mature enough to have sex and contract an STD, you're mature enough to talk about the STD with your past and future sexual partners. Resorting to anon e-cards is a joke of grandiose proportion.

[Lori]

Actually, that's the problem isn't it? You can be completely immature and STILL have sex and contract and STD. And then not know it. And then pass it on to someone else and you couldn't even tell them if you had anything. It's not a joke, it's a reality, and this is trying to catch those people are still immature, or insecure or ashamed enough to just NOT say anything...or lie...and hurt other innocent people in the process.

And it's better to be safe than sorry. If you're really "mature" and know that you've had no or one partner that could possible have given you something, then it's pretty easy to ignore it, isn't it? Especially if you've been tested and haven't had new partners since then. But if you're having dubious sex and you're not sure where you stand, an e-card like this, even in jest, could get you into a testing station...and isn't that a good thing, even if the test comes back negative?

[Anonymous]

I'm sending a "malicious" joke to my brother as we speak.

[Nolan]

"Actually, that's the problem isn't it? You can be completely immature and STILL have sex and contract and STD."

Exactly. Listen Josh, ppl who mess up and have sex with a coward deserve to know if they've been exposed, too.

You can decry cowardly behavior all day long, and what I just said would still be true.

Sorry about the malicious, practical jokes that were played on you, but that too, does not change the fact that no matter the medium, or even how it is delivered (even if maliciously delivered), because no matter how you found out, knowing soon as possible is not just preferable, but necessary in getting early treatment.

We can sleep together, and you can give me chlamydia, genital warts, AND stand in my front yard with all your friends with a big sign saying it, you can all laugh and jump up and down and laugh at me, I will still benefit medically (albeit not emotionally) from early detection.

You didn't think this through too well, you didn't think past the stupid jokes that were aimed at you. But you need to---because early detection is what this is about, not you and your bitterness over having been a victim of a malicious joke.

They should have written you back though. I would have.

[bob]

I always us an STD Florist.

[totally justified]

Josh is totally justified in being upset. What's wrong with you people attacking him? You'd sing a different tune if it happened to you.

The owners of the site need to figure out a more responsible mechanism for their site.

They also should respond to Josh, and others, instead of typically hiding out and not taking responsibility. People want to profit without taking responsibility. Pretty ironic. They set up a site about being responsible while they cower in the shadows.

[dumb site for losers]

If you are having such indiscriminate sex that you don't know where you got an STD from, and your partner wouldn't personally tell you, you need to rethink your lifestyle esp. because you endanger others.

The STD e-card is a really dumb idea, and clearly the owners have been thoughtless and not resolved the flaws. As usual, they're just people looking to make money and making it other people's problem.

[Chunkey the Munkey]

"Hi, I'm out having a BEAUTIFUL day and can't come to the phone right now! Hope you're having a BEAUTIFUL day, too! Remember, 'Share the Love'!"
(Beeep!)

"Uh, this is the free clinic, you might wanna hold off on the 'Share the Love' thing till you give us a call? Bye-bye..."

Or how about the greeting card the Palin kid sent her folks?

"I love you Mom!
I love you Pop!
I want to see you smile!

But I am only twelve years old,
too young to walk the aisle.

So to try and make you smile,
instead of getting riled,
I'm sending you this greeting card

to tell you
I'm With Child..."