Sexually Transmitted Diseases Research Assignment (Essay Sample)

Sexually Transmitted Diseases
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Abstract
Sexually transmitted diseases are major infections among the teenagers. Unprotected sex among teens between 15-24 years is rooming in most states as they attend to parties, get drunk, and act irresponsibly. The healthy people 2020 provides information regarding the common STDs such as syphilis, gonorrhea, Chlamydia chromatics, and human papilloma virus. Healthy people 2020 focuses on ensuring a healthy society through increased screening and reduced diagnoses. Further, the risk factors associated with STDs that are behavioral or non-behavioral are discussed. For instance, race, sexuality, and economic status are the primary risk factors. STDs are prevalent among same sex relationships especially the male as they spread syphilis easily to their counterparts. Low quality health facilities hinders the screening of individuals in the marginalized areas making the spreading of the diseases quite easy. Sex education, vaccinations, and regular screening are the basic interventions that could be applied to teens between 15 and 24 years. Besides, other adults should also participate in regular screening since they are also vulnerable if exposed to multiple sexual partners. Health educators should plan, organize, evaluate, and steer for continuous sex education in the society.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Introduction
Sexually transmitted diseases are infections that are transmitted from one individual to the other through sensual fluids when in contact. The major types of STDs are chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and HPV. The STDs are asymptomatic in the early stages, hence, making them easily transmittable. If not treated early enough, they lead to reproductive problems such as bareness and in extreme situations lead to cancer. Besides, a person living with STDs have a high tendency of contracting HIV infections. According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 20 million youths at the age of 15-24 are infected with STDs making it a public health issue (Workowski & Berman, 2011). However, these diseases are preventable and the healthy people 2020 objectives outline the measures to take to reduce the severity of STDs particularly between the youths and the minority groups. The paper will be about how venereal disease transmitted within teens, women and their race in the United States.
Overview of the Health Issue
The public's concern has been raised regarding the rate of STD spread among the youths. As stated earlier, the CDC has registered approximately 20 million infections every year with a majority of teens at the age of 18-24 ("Healthy People 2020", n.d.). The public should play a role in the prevention and control of this health issue since it is affecting the productivity of the future generation. Besides, it affects the public since it requires a lot of funding to treat the infected individuals making it a burden to the guardians and the government at large since they have to fund the treatment of these people. The health insurance agencies are required to ensure that the teens are covered to reduce the economic burden on parents and the government. Further, the healthy people 2020 involves all individuals in the community through education and interventions that could help in curbing STDs among the teens. Thus, it is the role of each and every person to create awareness to the teens to use the right means of preventing the STDs.
The current statistics according to CDC and other health agencies indicate a high infection rate among the teenagers. The healthy people 2020 estimates that the annual cost of STDs is around $16 billion ("Healthy People 2020", n.d.). The significant amount is as a result of the asymptomatic nature of the infections at the early stage where they could be treated at a lower cost. In most cases, people realize they are infected at the late stages where they develop other severe diseases. Further, the spread of these diseases leads to serious problems such as infertility as the CDC estimates that at least 24,000 women become infertile every year due to the STDs ("Healthy People 2020", n.d.). Besides, it has been noted that a high percentage of people with cervical and prostate cancer had earlier suffered from the STDs.
Statistics show that youths are the most affected people by STDs. Further, minority groups such as the African American and the Hispanics are also affected more than other Americans. Furthermore, individuals in the LGBTQ category are reported to be among the most affected by syphilis and gonorrhea (Workowski & Berman, 2011). The age, gender, and race risks have increased as people continue to engage in unprotected sex with more than one partner.
Risk Factors and Health Behaviors
The primary risk factor associated with STD is irresponsible sexual intercourse. Racial and ethnic disparities are social factors that have contributed to increasing in STDs. According to the healthy people website, the minority races such as the African American and the Hispanics have less access to health care, low education on contraceptives, and high poverty rates ("...