Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Florida

This is the largest number of STDs ever reported in the country. The trends also indicate that the number of STD cases is increasing over the years, an indicator that the prevention measures are overwhelmed. The youth under the age of 25 years are the most affected group of people forming 58% of the whole group of people who are affected (Florida Health, 2018). The state of Florida ranks 10th among the state having a large number of STD cases in the United States of America. However, the state ranks first in the list of HIV cases in the United States. It will take time before they become significantly low. The numbers indicate that the public health sector in conjunction with other quarters is doing some good work.

The State of Florida has developed the Sexually Transmitted Disease and Viral Hepatitis Section as part of the Division of Disease Control and Health Protection in the Florida’s Department of Health to help the state in strategizing on how to minimise the infection rates for sexually transmissible diseases (Florida Senate, 2017). Moreover, the section is mandated to help in the prevention of disease related complications by promoting sexual health education, early identification of diseases, timely treatment, implementation of partner services, and collaboration with both public and private partners. The government of Florida State bears the burden to provide health care services to STD patients. This law is simply intended for the youth under the age of 25 majorly because they form the largest percentage of people infected with STDs in the State of Florida.

The law requires that prior to having sexual intercourse with another person; an infected person must inform the other person of the presence of the sexually transmissible disease and obtain consent from the other person before engaging in sexual intercourse. This issue of discussing one’s historical sexual life is one of the hurdles that will help to reduce the sexual acts among the youth and consequently reduce the rates of infections amongst the group. However, there are some challenges to this law and may be varied by the knowledge of one’s health status. There are two types of knowledge in this case; actual knowledge and constructive knowledge. In addition, ignorance of infection can also be used in defence. Ignorance of infection is the absence of actual or constructive knowledge of a STD infection.

This means that despite the fact that a person may have a moral duty to be forthcoming with regards to their sexual history, there is no legal obligation to discover that they have a sexually transmissible disease unless they have experienced any signs of STDs. Also, there is no legal obligation to inform a sexual partner about their sexual history. The APRN has four key roles they can play in any clinical setting include nurse practitioner (NP), certified registered nurse anaesthetist (CRNA), clinical nurse specialist (CNS), and certified nurse midwife (CNM). 24 of Florida is meant to prevent individuals infected with HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases from engaging in sexual practices that are likely to boost the prevalence of STDs through their sexual partners (Florida Senate, 2017).

The use of condoms and abstinence are some of the sexual practices encouraged by the APRNs operating in various medical institutions around the state and the world at large. The month of April is used as Awareness Month whereby the medical director at the University of Florida, in conjunction with other medical and nurse practitioners use the opportunity to inform students about the risk of contracting STDs. In this, the medical and nurse practitioners have been very instrumental in supporting the law which intends to eliminate the prevalence of STDs among the people under the age of 25 years. Creating awareness among the young people about the STDs is a noble course for APRNs as it helps the young people to understand their sexuality better and therefore, the young people are most likely to engage in safe sex or even abstain entirely (Samkange-Zeeb, Spallek, & Zeeb, 2011).

According to World Health Organisation (2009), a pre-test counselling is an important aspect in preparing the persons psychologically on what to expect after receiving their results whether positive or negative. The prevalence of STDs in any society raises eyebrows on the moral standards observation and therefore, the discussions around such a subject tend to be confidential especially when involving particular individuals. The nurses are must adhere to high ethical and moral standards while practising their duties, whether counselling or issuing preventive items to the patients, since they are supposed to keep the patient's information secretly. According to Ulrich et al. (2010), nurses are under increasingly under pressure due to the new moral and ethical obligations brought about the prevalence of STDs in various parts of the world.

Creating awareness among the young people about the STDs is a noble course for inter-professionals as it helps the young people to understand their sexuality better and therefore, the young people are most likely to engage in safe sex or even abstain entirely. The law is important in mitigating issues concerning sexual misconduct among the population. Lawyers and medical professionals have a link where they can deliberate on the issues around the prevalence of sexually transmissible diseases. The issue of STDs has drawn the attention of various professionals and stakeholders especially due to the increasing rates of infections. The youth under the age of 25 years are the largest group infected with STDs forming 58 percent of the total infections in the state.

After 2 years, Florida court defines sexual intercourse. Retrieved from https://www. orlandosentinel. com/news/os-florida-court-sexual-intercourse-20170316-story. html CDC National Prevention Information Network. Sexually Transmitted Diseases | Florida Department of Health in Seminole. Retrieved from http://seminole. floridahealth. gov/programs-and-services/infectious-disease-services/std/index. html Gross, L. , & Arons, R. R. Do nurse practitioners make a difference in provision of health counseling in hospital outpatient departments?.  Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, 16(10), 462-466. News Service of Florida. 1186/1471-2458-11-727 The Florida Senate. Chapter 384 - 2017 Florida Statutes - The Florida Senate. Retrieved from https://www. flsenate. gov/Laws/Statutes/2017/Chapter384/All Ulrich, C. 1111/j. x World Health Organisation. Guidance on Testing and Counselling for HIV in Settings Attended by People Who Inject Drugs: Improving Access to Treatment, Care and Prevention.