Skip to main content
BMJ Open Access logoLink to BMJ Open Access
. 2020 Jun 4;47(2):117–128. doi: 10.1136/bmjsrh-2019-200482

Performance of a tool to identify different types of self-reported sexual risk among women attending a contraception and sexual health clinic: results of a cross-sectional survey

Natalie Edelman 1,2,, Jennifer Whetham 3, Jackie Cassell 2, Richard de Visser 4, Catherine Mercer 5, Christopher Jones 2, Abbey Gersten 6, Stephen Bremner 2
PMCID: PMC8053341  PMID: 32499381

Abstract

Introduction

A clinical prediction rule (CPR) using psychosocial questions was previously derived to target sexual healthcare in general practice by identifying women at risk of unintended pregnancy (UIP) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). This psychosocial CPR may help target resources within contraception and sexual health (CASH) services. This study investigated how well it predicted recent self-reported risk of UIP and STI acquisition among women attending a CASH clinic.

Methods

Female patients aged 16–44 years attending a CASH clinic in South-East England were offered a questionnaire on arrival. This comprised psychosocial questions, and others addressing three sexual risks: (1) two or more male sexual partners in the last year (2+P), (2) risk of STI acquisition through most recent partner and (3) risk of UIP in the last 6 months. A CPR score was calculated for each participant and cross-tabulated against self-report of each sexual risk to estimate CPR sensitivity and specificity.

Results

The psychosocial questions predicting 2+P had sensitivity 83.2% (95% CI 79.3% to 86.5%) and specificity 56.1% (95% CI 51.3%−60.6%). Those predicting combined 2+P and/or risk of STI acquisition through most recent partner had a sensitivity of 89.1% (95% CI 85.7%−91.8%) and specificity of 43.7% (95% CI 39.0%−48.5%). Questions predicting risk of UIP in the last 6 months had a sensitivity of 82.5% (95% CI 78.6%−86.0%) and specificity of 48.3% (95% CI 43.4%−53.1%).

Conclusions

The CPR demonstrated good sensitivity but low specificity, so may be suited to triaging or stratifying which interventions to offer CASH patients and by which mode (eg, online vs face-to-face). Further investigation of causal links between psychosocial factors and sexual risk is warranted to support development of psychosocial interventions for this patient group.

Keywords: family planning service provision, genitourinary medicine, needs assessment, service delivery, surveys, sexually transmitted infections


Key messages.

  • Clinical prediction rules (CPRs) may help to identify intervention needs and target resources within sexual health services.

  • Psychosocial questions can be used in CPRs to identify recent sexual risk experiences in women of reproductive age.

  • A psychosocial CPR to identify sexual risk among women of reproductive age has higher sensitivity but lower specificity in contraception and sexual health than in general practice.

Introduction

Clinical prediction rules (CPRs) identify risk of adverse outcomes in individuals using patient characteristics data, and can inform decisions about clinical intervention. Most sexual health CPRs comprise sexual behavioural and sociodemographic factors and focus on sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk.1 2 Previously we developed a CPR to identify women at risk of STIs and/or unintended pregnancy (UIP) attending general practice (GP),3 using psychosocial questions identified from preliminary studies.4 5 Psychosocial factors are increasingly explored in sexual health research, reflecting the need to address social determinants of sexual health,6 and may prove more acceptable than sexual behaviour questions in GP7 8 for which the CPR was originally developed.

The CPR was generated for women only as psychosocial determinants of sexual risk and morbidity may vary considerably between the sexes,9 for example, alcohol use predicts number of sexual partners among female STI clinic attenders but not male.10 The nature of contraception also indicates the benefit of a sex-specific CPR, while sexual healthcare engagement and delivery preferences also vary by sex and/or gender.11 12

CPRs may offer opportunities for efficiency amid cuts to specialist sexual healthcare of up to 20% in Britain13 and elsewhere.14 As an example, previous research has investigated a digitally-delivered CPR to triage STI testing in specialist sexual health settings for high-risk subpopulations.15 In Britain, specialist contraceptive advice and supply, and STI testing, treatment and partner notification, are increasingly co-delivered in contraception and sexual health (CASH) clinics.6 Although women attending specialist sexual health services experience higher rates of sexual risk than those attending GP for sexual healthcare,16 17 this may not be true for those women attending CASH clinics only for contraceptive advice and supply. We hypothesised that our psychosocial CPR may support differential targeting of women attending CASH clinics who may not require both contraception and STI testing, and set out to assess its performance using an existing dataset, before investigating digital delivery.

The study aimed to investigate how well our psychosocial CPR – developed for use in GP – performed in predicting self-reported recent risk of UIP and STI acquisition among women of reproductive age attending a specialist sexual health service.

Methods

Patient and public involvement

We conducted patient and public involvement (PPI) at a women’s centre to explore the purposes, format and acceptability of a psychosocial CPR. Opportunistic PPI consultation took place in GP waiting rooms to explore the feasibility and acceptability of the recruitment and data collection plans described below. We also held consultations at a youth forum with women aged 16–17 years. As participation was anonymous, we distributed lay summary leaflets of findings to all recruitment sites instead of to individual participants.

Study sample

We undertook a cross-sectional survey of women attending an urban specialist sexual health and contraception clinic in a hospital outpatient setting in South-East England (referred to as ‘SHAC’ as it was a genitourinary medicine clinic expanded to include contraception services). We aimed to recruit a convenience sample of n=500 women between April and August 2016, sufficient to enable multivariable statistical modelling.18 Using a nomogram for sensitivity and specificity sample size calculations, a sample size of n=500 would be adequate to estimate a sensitivity of 80% with a 95% CI to within ±5% given a prevalence of 50%.19 The sample comprised female attenders aged 16–44 years regardless of attendance reason, recruited as part of a larger study to develop a CPR to target sexual healthcare to women attending GPs, but eventually not needed for that derivation.3

Recruitment and data collection

Recruitment took place two mornings per week, when women were attending for walk-in and booked appointments for dedicated contraception services, STI testing and treatment. Women were offered an envelope by reception staff, or by a researcher immediately after they booked in, with the exception of visibly distressed women, those known to have insufficient English language skills, or those clearly outside the eligible age range. Due to resource limitations, it was not possible to record the numbers of women not offered or refusing a questionnaire, or the reasons why. Each envelope contained a pen, participant information sheet (PIS) and a questionnaire, comprising potential CPR items and the outcomes of interest. The questionnaire was designed to take 5 min to complete, while awaiting an appointment. To maintain brevity we did not capture additional demographic data. Participants were instructed to complete the questionnaire anonymously, sitting alone in the waiting area if possible. Consent was implied by questionnaire completion. Three initial questionnaire items were used to screen out those not identifying as female, outside the eligible age range and/or who had completed the questionnaire previously. The questionnaire text instructed these patients to seal and return their questionnaire without completing it further. The questionnaire and PIS instructed participants to seal their questionnaire in the envelope before returning to staff to be securely passed to the researchers.

Data management and storage

Data were stored at Brighton and Sussex Medical School for the study duration. Data were double-entered into a statistical package by an external company and transferred to Stata 1320 for analysis. Accuracy checks were performed on a random 10% sample and anomalies checked and addressed individually by researchers.

Measurement of sexual risk and psychosocial predictors

Three sets of CPR psychosocial questions were investigated, each set having been previously derived using clinical prediction modelling3 to predict one of the following outcomes:

  1. Self-report of 2+ male sexual partners in the last year (hereafter ‘2+P’)

  2. Self-report of 2+P and/or risk of STI through most recent partner (abbreviated hereafter as ‘combined risk’)

  3. Self-report of risk of UIP in the last 6 months (abbreviated hereafter as ‘risk of UIP’).

The first outcome was chosen as indicative of possible need for sexual health advice and STI testing, and measured using the item ‘In the last year, how many men have you had sexual intercourse with (by sexual intercourse, we mean a man’s penis in a woman’s vagina, mouth or anus)?’.

The second outcome was chosen as experiences such as multiple partnerships and condom use only partly predict poor sexual health outcomes.21 This was measured using a composite variable comprising positive responses to the items ‘The man I most recently had sex with didn’t always use condoms for vaginal sex with previous partners’, and ‘The man I most recently had sex with had at least one sexual partner in the last year before me’ and ‘Thinking about condom use with your most recent male sexual partner … condoms were sometimes used for vaginal sex OR condoms were never used for vaginal sex’.

The third outcome was chosen as indicative of possible ongoing need for contraceptive advice and supply. This was measured by combining responses to an item about contraception use (‘Thinking about your contraception use in the last 6 months, please tick one statement which most applies to you’) with another about pregnancy intention (‘Overall, in the last 6 months how much have you wanted to avoid getting pregnant?’), each adapted from previous studies.22 23 Women responding ‘Contraception was used but the method failed’ or ‘Contraception was never used’ or Contraception was used, but not on every occasion’ and that they had wanted to avoid getting pregnant ‘very much’ or ‘quite a lot’ were categorised as having been at risk of UIP in the last 6 months.

Data analysis

For each CPR set, a score was generated for each participant using their psychosocial question responses (table 1). Each participant’s score was cross-tabulated against their self-report of that outcome to assess the sensitivity and specificity of that item set in predicting 2+P, combined risk and risk of UIP. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated for a range of CPR scores, using the original cut-off value specified from the GP sample3 and an alternative cut-off value that better balanced sensitivity and specificity. Participants were excluded if there were missing data for either the outcome of interest or any of the exposures comprising that CPR item set (on the basis that this would constitute an incomplete and therefore invalid CPR score). Positive and negative predictive values for each CPR set were also calculated on this basis using the same cross-tabulation.

Table 1.

Psychosocial questions and response options, indicating which clinical prediction rule set each contributed to

Item wording CPR for 2+P*
Response options (score)
CPR for combined risk†
Response options (score)
CPR for risk of UIP‡
Response options (score)
Q2. How old are you? 15 years or less (excluded)
Between 16 and 24 years (2)
Between 25 and 34 years (0)
Between 35 and 44 years (0)
45 years or older (excluded)
15 years or less (excluded)
Between 16 and 24 years (1)
Between 25 and 34 years (0)
Between 35 and 44 years (0)
45 years or older (excluded)
Item not part of this CPR
Q4. Thinking about where you are living now, which statement best describes your circumstances? I am renting or living rent-free (including living with parents or staying with friends) (2)
I own my own home (including mortgage, shared ownership or bought outright) (0)
I am renting or living rent-free (including living with parents or staying with friends) (1)
I own my own home (including mortgage, shared ownership or bought outright) (0)
Item not part of this CPR
Q6. How often is each of the following kinds of support available to you if you need it?
Someone to prepare your meals if you’re unable to do it yourself.
Item not part of this CPR None of the time (1)
A little of the time (1)
Some of the time (0)
Most of the time (0)
All of the time (0)
Item not part of this CPR
Q6. How often is each of the following kinds of support available to you if you need it?
Someone to help with daily chores if you’re sick.
None of the time (1)
A little of the time (1)
Some of the time (0)
Most of the time (0)
All of the time (0)
Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR
Q7. To what extent is the statement ‘I have high self-esteem’ true for you? Not very true of me (0)
Somewhat untrue of me (0)
Neither untrue nor true of me (0)
Somewhat true of me (2)
Very true of me (2)
Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR
Q8. In the last 12 months have you received treatment from a health professional for depression? Item not part of this CPR Yes (1)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Yes (2)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Q9. How strongly do you agree with the statement ‘Having a partner at all times is important to me’? Strongly agree (0)
Agree (0)
Disagree (1)
Strongly disagree (1)
Strongly agree (0)
Agree (0)
Disagree (2)
Strongly disagree (2)
Item not part of this CPR
Q10. How often do you have six or more units of alcohol on one occasion? Daily or almost daily (2)
Weekly or almost weekly (2)
Monthly (0)
Less than monthly (0)
Never (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR
Q11. Do you smoke cigarettes at all nowadays? Yes I smoke cigarettes or roll-ups (1)
Yes I smoke e-cigarettes (0)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Yes I smoke cigarettes or roll-ups (2)
Yes I smoke e-cigarettes (0)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Item not part of this CPR
Q12. Have you ever taken any non-prescribed, illicit or illegal drugs, including legal highs? Yes (1)
No (0)
Don’t know (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Yes (1)
No (0)
Don’t know (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Item not part of this CPR
Q13. At present are you…? Living as a couple with a partner or spouse (0)
In a steady relationship but not living together (0)
In a casual relationship (4)
Single (4)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Living as a couple with a partner or spouse (0)
In a steady relationship but not living together (0)
In a casual relationship (4)
Single (4)
Prefer not to answer (0))
Item not part of this CPR
Q14. Please rate how emotionally satisfying your current relationship is, or how emotionally satisfying you most recent relationship was if you are currently single. Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR Extremely satisfying (0)
Very satisfying (0)
Moderately satisfying (1)
Slightly satisfying (1)
Not at all satisfying (1)
Q16. During your current or most recent relationship did your partner ever have sexual intercourse with anyone besides you? Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR No definitely not (0)
I don’t think so (0)
It’s quite likely (2)
Yes, definitely (2)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Q17. Have you ever been in a relationship with a partner who…?
Insulted or talked down to you often.
Yes (1)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR
Q18. How old were you when you first had sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex (including experiences you may not have wanted or that happened at an early age)? Item not part of this CPR Under 16 years old (2)
16 years or older (0)
I’ve never had sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex (excluded)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Under 16 years old (1)
16 years or older (0)
I’ve never had sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex (excluded)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Q20. The man I most recently had sex with is five or more years older than me. Item not part of this CPR True (1)
Probably true (1)
I have no idea (0)
Probably not true (0)
Not true (0)
Item not part of this CPR
Q25. In the last 6 months have you used emergency contraception at all? Item not part of this CPR Item not part of this CPR Yes (5)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Q28. In the last 6 months have you taken a pregnancy test because you thought you might be pregnant? Yes (1)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Yes (1)
No (0)
Prefer not to answer (0)
Item not part of this CPR

Q1 and Q3 are excluded as they were used only to remove ineligible respondents.

*2+Pdenotes two or more male sexual partners.

†Twoor more male sexual partners in the last year and/or most recent partner hadnot used condoms with previous partners in last year.

‡Unintendedpregnancy risk in the last 6 months.

CPR, clinical prediction rule; UIP, unintended pregnancy.

Results

The final sample comprised n=532 respondents of which 44.5% were aged 16–24 years. Logistically it was not possible to assess what proportion of eligible women attending the clinic during recruitment this figure represents. However, of 589 questionnaires handed out, 553 (94%) were returned, of which n=537 (97%) were eligible. A further five participants were excluded from analysis because sexual risk items were not completed.

Among the final sample, 62.3% (95% CI 58.0% to 66.5%) (n=324) self-reported multiple male sexual partners in the last year (n=12 missing data); 76.6% (95% CI 72.7% to 80.3%) (n=387) self-reported combined risk of multiple male sexual partners and/or risk of STI through most recent partner (n=27 missing data); and 34.7% (95% CI 30.6% to 39.1%) (n=173) self-reported risk of UIP in the last 6 months (n=34 missing data). Table 2 presents the distribution of item responses.

Table 2.

Distribution of responses to clinical prediction rule psychosocial items by outcome

CPR psychosocial item 2+ male partners in last year Combined STI risk UIP risk in last 6 months
Yes No Missing Total % Yes No Missing Total % Yes No Missing Total %
Age group (years)
16–24 169 63 5 237 44.5 189 39 9 237 44.5 88 139 10 237 45
25–44 155 133 7 295 55.5 198 79 18 295 55.5 85 186 24 295 56
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Housing tenure
Renting or living rent-free 287 155 10 452 85 343 91 18 452 85 158 269 25 452 85
Owner 35 41 2 78 14.7 42 27 9 78 14.7 15 55 8 78 15
Missing data 2 0 0 2 0.4 2 0 0 2 0.4 0 1 1 2 0.4
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Lived with both natural parents to age 14 years
Yes 230 144 7 381 71.6 271 91 19 381 71.6 117 242 22 381 72
No 91 47 5 143 26.9 111 25 7 143 26.9 53 80 10 143 27
Missing data 3 5 0 8 1.5 5 2 1 8 1.5 3 3 2 8 1.5
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
How often do you have someone to prepare your meals if you're unable to do it yourself?
Has help sometimes, a little or not at all 157 73 7 237 44.5 189 36 12 237 44.5 82 146 9 237 45
Mostly or always has help 158 121 4 283 53.2 188 81 14 283 53.2 88 171 24 283 53
Missing data 9 2 1 12 2.3 10 1 1 12 2.3 3 8 1 12 2.3
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
How often do you have someone to help with daily chores if you're sick?
Mostly or always has help 156 112 4 272 51.1 182 76 14 272 51.1 87 164 21 272 51
Has help sometimes, a little or not at all 161 82 7 250 47 197 41 12 250 47 83 155 12 250 47
Missing data 7 2 1 10 1.9 8 1 1 10 1.9 3 6 1 10 1.9
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Degree of agreement with the statement 'I have high self-esteem'
Not very true of me 46 23 1 70 13.2 55 11 4 70 13.2 28 40 2 70 13
Somewhat untrue of me 54 34 3 91 17.1 68 20 3 91 17.1 31 55 5 91 17
Neither true nor untrue of me 50 36 2 88 16.5 65 18 5 88 16.5 28 53 7 88 17
Somewhat true of me 134 80 2 216 40.6 154 54 8 216 40.6 65 139 12 216 41
Very true of me 33 21 3 57 10.7 37 15 5 57 10.7 20 34 3 57 11
Missing data 7 2 1 10 1.9 8 0 2 10 1.9 1 4 5 10 1.9
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Treatment for depression in last 12 months
Yes 88 36 1 125 23.5 100 23 2 125 23.5 43 76 6 125 24
No 234 159 11 404 75.9 284 95 25 404 75.9 130 247 27 404 76
Missing data 2 1 0 3 0.6 3 0 0 3 0.6 0 2 1 3 0.6
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Degree of agreement with statement 'Having a partner at all times is important to me'
Strongly agree 14 19 0 33 6.2 18 12 3 33 6.2 8 22 3 33 6.2
Agree 48 54 5 107 20.1 65 35 7 107 20.1 32 67 8 107 20
Disagree 199 99 6 304 57.1 232 59 13 304 57.1 106 183 15 304 57
Strongly disagree 58 18 1 77 14.5 65 9 3 77 14.5 26 47 4 77 15
Missing data 5 6 0 11 2.1 7 3 1 11 2.1 1 6 4 11 2.1
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Frequency of 6+ units of alcohol on one occasion
Daily, or almost daily 17 2 0 19 3.6 18 1 0 19 3.6 8 11 0 19 3.6
Weekly, or almost weekly 143 57 5 205 38.5 164 33 8 205 38.5 71 123 11 205 39
Monthly 86 46 1 133 25 99 27 7 133 25 44 80 9 133 25
Less than monthly 56 59 3 118 22.2 74 35 9 118 22.2 37 72 9 118 22
Never 21 32 3 56 10.5 31 22 3 56 10.5 13 39 4 56 11
Missing data 1 0 0 1 0.2 1 0 0 1 0.2 0 0 1 1 0.2
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Current cigarette smoking or roll-ups
Yes 140 53 2 195 36.7 159 30 6 195 36.7 70 109 16 195 37
No 182 140 10 332 62.4 225 86 21 332 62.4 101 213 18 332 62
Missing data 2 3 0 5 1 3 2 0 5 1 2 3 0 5 1
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Ever taken drugs including legal highs
Yes 225 96 2 323 60.7 257 60 6 323 60.7 113 192 18 323 61
No 87 93 8 188 35.3 115 54 19 188 35.3 49 123 16 188 35
Don't know 1 1 0 2 0.4 1 1 0 2 0.4 1 1 0 2 0.4
Missing data 11 6 2 19 3.6 14 3 2 19 3.6 10 9 0 19 3.6
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Current relationship status
Living as a couple with a partner or a spouse 21 85 4 110 20.7 40 57 13 110 20.7 21 81 8 110 21
In a steady relationship but not living together 66 46 1 113 21.2 79 28 6 113 21.2 38 66 9 113 21
In a casual relationship 59 8 4 71 13.3 62 5 4 71 13.3 28 39 4 71 13
Single 175 53 2 230 43.2 199 27 4 230 43.2 85 132 13 230 43
Missing data 3 4 1 8 1.5 7 1 0 8 1.5 1 7 0 8 1.5
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Emotional satisfaction from current or most recent relationship
Extremely satisfying 39 60 1 100 18.8 50 41 9 100 18.8 23 69 8 100 19
Very satisfying 84 67 2 153 28.8 106 39 8 153 28.8 51 94 8 153 29
Moderately satisfying 89 26 3 118 22.2 101 14 3 118 22.2 46 66 6 118 22
Slightly satisfying 60 17 2 79 14.8 67 10 2 79 14.8 28 45 6 79 15
Not at all satisfying 29 16 2 47 8.8 34 10 3 47 8.8 14 29 4 47 8.8
N/A* 12 2 0 14 2.6 13 1 0 14 2.6 5 9 0 14 2.6
Missing data 11 8 2 21 3.9 16 3 2 21 3.9 6 13 2 21 3.9
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
During your current or most recent relationship did your partner ever have sexual intercourse with anyone besides you?
No, definitely not 141 119 4 264 49.6 168 79 17 264 49.6 75 174 15 264 50
I don't think so 108 42 5 155 29.1 126 24 5 155 29.1 54 89 12 155 29
It's quite likely 24 12 2 38 7.1 29 6 3 38 7.1 18 17 3 38 7.1
Yes, definitely 33 17 0 50 9.4 42 7 1 50 9.4 17 30 3 50 9.4
N/A* 10 2 0 12 2.3 11 1 0 12 2.3 6 6 0 12 2.3
Missing data 8 4 1 13 2.5 11 1 1 13 2.5 3 9 1 13 2.5
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Have you ever had a partner who insulted or talked down to you often?
Yes 154 85 4 243 45.7 183 52 8 243 45.7 81 147 15 243 46
No 166 102 6 274 51.5 197 62 15 274 51.5 90 167 17 274 52
Missing data 4 9 2 15 2.8 7 4 4 15 2.8 2 11 2 15 2.8
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Age of first sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex
Under 16 years 138 60 2 200 37.6 157 38 5 200 37.6 74 112 14 200 38
16 years or older 186 128 8 322 60.5 229 75 18 322 60.5 99 205 18 322 61
N/A† 0 2 0 2 0.4 0 2 0 2 0.4 0 2 0 2 0.4
Missing data 0 6 2 8 1.5 1 3 4 8 1.5 0 6 2 8 1.5
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Man last had sex with 5+ years older
True 78 47 2 127 23.9 98 24 5 127 23.9 43 75 9 127 24
Probably true 6 1 0 7 1.3 7 0 0 7 1.3 2 5 0 7 1.3
I have no idea 3 0 0 3 0.6 3 0 0 3 0.6 0 2 1 3 0.6
Probably not true 1 0 0 1 0.2 1 0 0 1 0.2 0 1 0 1 0.2
Not true 232 126 5 363 68.2 274 76 13 363 68.2 124 223 16 363 68
N/A‡ 0 18 0 18 3.4 0 18 0 18 3.4 0 17 1 18 3.4
Missing data 4 4 5 13 2.4 4 0 9 13 2.4 4 2 7 13 2.4
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Use of emergency contraception in the last 6 months
Yes 87 27 1 115 21.6 95 19 1 115 21.6 79 34 2 115 22
No 229 140 7 376 70.7 283 77 16 376 70.7 94 266 16 376 71
N/A§ 2 23 0 25 4.7 3 21 1 25 4.7 0 25 0 25 4.7
Missing data 6 6 4 16 3 6 1 9 16 3 0 0 16 16 3
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 532 100 173 325 34 532 100
Pregnancy test used in last 6 months as thought pregnant
Yes 126 59 1 186 35 148 33 5 186 35 89 89 8 186 35
No 192 114 8 314 59.1 232 68 14 314 59.1 83 217 14 314 59.1
N/A§ 1 18 0 19 3.5 2 16 1 19 3.5 0 19 0 19 3.5
Missing data 5 5 3 13 2.4 5 1 7 13 2.4 1 0 12 13 2.4
Total 324 196 12 532 100 387 118 27 531 100 173 325 34 532 100

*Never been in a relationship.

†Never had sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex.

‡No male partners ever/no male partners in last year.

§No male partners ever/no male partners in last year/no vaginal sex in last year/pregnant throughout last 6 months.

CPR, clinical prediction rule; N/A, not applicable; STI, sexually transmitted infection; UIP, unintended pregnancy.

Table 3 comprises a cross-tabulation of CPR scores against participants’ self-report of each outcome, displaying the sensitivity and specificity offered by using each score as a cut-off value categorising a participant as ‘at risk’ or ‘not’.

Table 3.

Sensitivity and specificity of the clinical prediction rule in identifying different sexual risk experiences

Outcome CPR score Participants self-reporting as at risk (n) Sensitivity (95% CI) Participants self-reporting as not at risk (n) Specificity (95% CI)
2+ male sexual partners in last year
≤8 50 Not calculated 83 Not calculated
9 19 83.2 (79.3 to 86.5) 18 56.1 (51.3 to 60.6)
10 38 76.8 (72.7 to 80.7) 11 68.2 (63.7 to 72.5)
11 27 64.0 (59.4 to 68.4) 13 75.7 (71.5 to 80.0)
12 34 54.9 (50.2 to 59.6) 9 84.5 (80.8 to 87.7)
≥13 129 Not calculated 14 Not calculated
Total 297 148
Combined 2+ partners or risk from partner
≤4 20 Not calculated 22 Not calculated
5 18 94.2 (91.7 to 96.3) 16 25.3 (21.4 to 29.8)
6 16 89.1 (85.7 to 91.8) 8 43.7 (39.0 to 48.5)
7 22 84.6 (80.9 to 87.9) 8 52.9 (48.1 to 57.6)
8 33 78.3 (74.1 to 82.0) 12 62.0 (57.3 to 66.6)
9 30 69.0 (64.5 to 73.4) 5 75.9 (71.7 to 79.9)
10 50 60.3 (55.7 to 65.0) 6 81.6 (77.7 to 85.2)
≥11 161 Not calculated 10 Not calculated
Total 350 87
Risk of unintended pregnancy in the last 6 months
≤2 28 Not calculated 130 Not calculated
3 29 82.5 (78.6 to 86.0) 70 48.3 (43.4 to 53.1)
4 15 64.4 (59.6 to 68.9) 20 74.3 (70.0 to 78.4)
5 10 55.0 (50.2 to 59.8) 16 81.8 (77.8 to 85.4)
6 19 48.8 (43.9 to 53.6) 6 87.7 (84.2 to 90.6)
≥7 59 Not calculated 27 Not calculated
Total 160 269

CPR, clinical prediction rule.

For 2+P, excluding participants with missing outcome data or CPR items gave a sample size of n=445, of which 66.7% (297/445) reported multiple partnerships in the last year. For combined risk, excluding participants with missing outcome data or CPR items gave a sample size of n=437, of which 80.0% (350/437) reported combined risk in the last year. For UIP risk, excluding participants with missing outcome data or CPR items gave a sample size of n=429, of which 37.3% (160/429) reported unintended pregnancy risk in the last 6 months. Thus, missing exposure data was greatest for items contributing to the CPR for unintended pregnancy risk, but sample sizes for all CPRs were compromised by missing data.

Using the original cut-off score of 9 (on a scale of 0–18), the CPR for ‘2+ sexual partners in the last year’ had a positive predictive value (PPV) of 79.2% (247/312) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 62.4% (83/133). Alternatively, a cut-off score of 10+ had a PPV of 82.9% (228/275) and NPV of 59.4% (101/170). The CPR for ‘combined risk from multiple partnerships or most recent partner’, using the original cut-off score of 6+ (on a scale of 0–17), had a PPV of 86.4% (312/361) and NPV of 50.0% (38/76). Alternatively, a cut-off score of 7+ gave a PPV of 87.8% (296/337) and NPV of 46.0% (46/100). Using the original cut-off score of 3+ (on a scale of 0–11), the CPR for ‘unintended pregnancy risk in the last 6 months’ had a PPV of 48.7% (132/271) and NPV of 82.3% (130/158). Alternatively, a cut-off score of 4+ gave a PPV of 59.9% (103/172) and NPV of 77.8% (200/257). For each outcome the c-statistic and Receiver Operating Curve is provided in the online supplementary file.

Supplementary data

bmjsrh-2019-200482supp001.pdf (235KB, pdf)

Discussion

Findings indicate that the psychosocial variables demonstrated good sensitivity in identifying those at recent risk of UIP or of STI acquisition in our dataset, but that the CPR does not constitute a useful alternative to direct questions about recent sexual risk experiences in this setting.

Overall, the CPR scores and original cut-off values yielded higher sensitivity but lower specificity for women attending this SHAC service when compared with women attending GP3 for whom the CPR was originally developed. This may indicate higher prevalence of psychosocial risk factors among SHAC-attending women compared with GP attenders. Certainly our previous comparative analysis between the GP and SHAC samples indicated that after adjusting for the younger age of the SHAC participants, 2+P in the last year was more strongly associated with current smoking in the GP cohort, but more strongly associated with illicit drug use ever in the SHAC cohort.24 Similarly, it is important to note that the CPR was not designed to identify women needing contraceptive advice and supply for reasons other than inconsistent or failed use, such as switching methods due to side effects or lifestyle and/or attending for long-acting reversible contraception removal.25

The CPR performance was broadly comparable with tools developed using specialist sexual health setting data, such as a chlamydia infection tool for heterosexual women (sensitivity 70.0%, specificity 62.3%)26 and an acute HIV infection tool for men who have sex with men (sensitivity 83.3%, specificity 52.5%).27 Nonetheless, the low NPVs would not provide clinical confidence in using the CPR to gate-keep interventions without full sexual history-taking. This reflects the difficulty of applying a CPR developed in primary care in higher prevalence settings, suggesting that external CPR validation should consider the impact of setting prevalence of NPV and PPV when determining the best cut-off score.

To ensure the questionnaire was brief and suitable for self-completion, the only sociodemographic data captured were age and sex (inclusion criteria) and housing tenure (a proxy of socioeconomic status5). Capture of more sociodemographic data would have enabled assessment of the transferability of these findings to other settings; however, the study was not designed to generate generalizable findings, but rather to identify if validation of the CPR is worthy of pursuit.

Convenience sampling may have resulted in under- or over-sampling those reporting sexual risk experiences and/or adjunct psychosocial issues. Nonetheless, those who chose not to participate based on sexual risk and/or other covariates would also likely decline the CPR in practice so our findings may still anticipate CPR clinical performance. The CPR question sets are not yet validated in primary care; nonetheless, this study offers some validity by demonstrating their discriminatory potential in women of the same age attending a SHAC.

The validity of self-reported risk could not be evaluated because it was not logistically possible to link answers with clinic data. Oral and anal intercourse were not captured to ensure questionnaire brevity, therefore the combined variable for STI acquisition risk only captured risk from vaginal intercourse. Several psychosocial items were unvalidated (due to necessary adaptations to enable brief questionnaire self-completion). Recall bias may also have affected item responses.

The CPR was developed as a paper-and-pencil self-completion tool, meeting delivery preferences identified during public consultation, and addressing a recognised need for brief sexual health assessment using self-scoring.28 However, digital delivery may enable more complete and accurate reporting. Limited resources meant that it was not possible to estimate response rates, investigate reasons for non-participation or capture the number of women who refused a questionnaire or were not offered one due to the exclusion criteria. Thus, it is not possible to deduce the acceptability of the CPR questions in this and other CASH settings, although PPI indicated all items were acceptable.

Increasing digital and/or shared delivery of contraception and STI interventions in CASH clinics opens the possibility for CPRs to triage patients to different interventions. Self-completion CPRs such as this one can be incorporated into electronic or face-to-face book-in processes, or within specific care pathways, to identify if additional intervention is required.

Finally, our findings contribute to the broader study of association between social factors and sexual health, indicating the value of further research to investigate the role of psychosocial factors as causal factors in sexual risk, to inform psychosocial interventions aiming to reduce risk for women accessing sexual healthcare.

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge all those who have helped with and contributed to the study. This includes attenders at Brighton Women’s Centre and at Newhaven Youth Forum, the NIHR Clinical Research Network Kent, Surrey and Sussex, the site Principal Investigators including Dr Paul Deffley, and the staff and patients of the participating site.

Footnotes

Twitter: @natalieedelman

Contributors: NE led the study conception, design, implementation, analysis and publication. JC, RV and CM contributed to conception, design and publication. JW and AG acted as Principal Investigators at study sites, contributing also to study planning and data acquisition, and consulting on the publication and cut-off score choices. CJ and SB advised on the sample size, plan of analysis and interpretation of findings, as well as this publication, and SB oversaw the analysis itself.

Funding: This is a summary of independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)’s Doctoral Research Fellowship programme (DRF-2013-06-004).

Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health.

Competing interests: None declared.

Patient and public involvement: Patients and/or the public were involved in the design, or conduct, or reporting, or dissemination plans of this research. The Methods section contains further details.

Provenance and peer review: Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

Data availability statement

Data are available upon request.

Ethics statements

Patient consent for publication

Not required.

Ethics approval

Ethical approval for this study was granted by the National Research Ethics Service (Ref 16/LO/0206).

References

  • 1. Falasinnu T, Gustafson P, Hottes TS, et al. A critical appraisal of risk models for predicting sexually transmitted infections. Sex Transm Dis 2014;41:321–30. 10.1097/OLQ.0000000000000120 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 2. Falasinnu T, Gilbert M, Gustafson P, et al. Deriving and validating a risk estimation tool for screening asymptomatic chlamydia and gonorrhea. Sex Transm Dis 2014;41:706–12. 10.1097/OLQ.0000000000000205 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 3. Edelman NL, Cassell JA, Mercer CH, et al. Deriving a clinical prediction rule to target sexual healthcare to women attending British general practices. Prev Med 2018;112:185–92. 10.1016/j.ypmed.2018.04.030 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 4. Edelman NL, de Visser RO, Mercer CH, et al. Targeting sexual health services in primary care: a systematic review of the psychosocial correlates of adverse sexual health outcomes reported in probability surveys of women of reproductive age. Prev Med 2015;81:345–56. 10.1016/j.ypmed.2015.09.019 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 5. Edelman N, Cassell JA, de Visser R, et al. Can psychosocial and socio-demographic questions help identify sexual risk among heterosexually-active women of reproductive age? Evidence from Britain's third National Survey of Ssexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal-3). BMC Public Health 2017;17:5. 10.1186/s12889-016-3918-8 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 6. Department of Health . A framework for sexual health improvement in England (Report No: 18420). London, UK: Department of Health, 2013. [Google Scholar]
  • 7. Define Research & Insight Ltd . Define Chlamydia screening and sexual health marketing - young people final report (Contract No: Define job number: 1649/COI reference: 285937). London, UK: Define Research & Insight Ltd for Department of Health, 2008. [Google Scholar]
  • 8. Edelman NL, Patel H, Glasper A, et al. Understanding barriers to sexual health service access among substance-misusing women on the South East coast of England. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2013;39:258–63. 10.1136/jfprhc-2012-100507 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 9. Tannenbaum C, Greaves L, Graham ID. Why sex and gender matter in implementation research. BMC Med Res Methodol 2016;16:145. 10.1186/s12874-016-0247-7 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 10. Carey KB, Senn TE, Walsh JL, et al. Alcohol use predicts number of sexual partners for female but not male STI clinic patients. AIDS Behav 2016;20:52–9. 10.1007/s10461-015-1177-9 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 11. Green CA, Pope CR. Gender, psychosocial factors and the use of medical services: a longitudinal analysis. Soc Sci Med 1999;48:1363–72. 10.1016/S0277-9536(98)00440-7 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 12. Barnard S, Free C, Bakolis I, et al. Comparing the characteristics of users of an online service for STI self-sampling with clinic service users: a cross-sectional analysis. Sex Transm Infect 2018;94:377–83. 10.1136/sextrans-2017-053302 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 13. Iacobucci G, Torjesen I. Cuts to sexual health services are putting patients at risk, says King's Fund. BMJ 2017;356:j1328. 10.1136/bmj.j1328 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 14. Leichliter JS, Heyer K, Peterman TA, et al. US public sexually transmitted disease clinical services in an era of declining public health funding: 2013-14. Sex Transm Dis 2017;44:505–9. 10.1097/OLQ.0000000000000629 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 15. King C, Hughes G, Furegato M, et al. Predicting STI diagnoses amongst MSM and young people attending sexual health clinics in England: triage algorithm development and validation using routine clinical data. EClinicalMedicine 2018;4-5:43–51. 10.1016/j.eclinm.2018.11.002 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 16. Scott Lamontagne D, Baster K, Emmett L, et al. Incidence and reinfection rates of genital chlamydial infection among women aged 16-24 years attending general practice, family planning and genitourinary medicine clinics in England: a prospective cohort study by the Chlamydia Recall Study Advisory Group. Sex Transm Infect 2007;83:292–303. 10.1136/sti.2006.022053 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 17. Clifton S, Mercer CH, Woodhall SC, et al. Patterns of chlamydia testing in different settings and implications for wider STI diagnosis and care: a probability sample survey of the British population. Sex Transm Infect 2017;93:sextrans-2016-052719. 10.1136/sextrans-2016-052719 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 18. Peduzzi P, Concato J, Kemper E, et al. A simulation study of the number of events per variable in logistic regression analysis. J Clin Epidemiol 1996;49:1373–9. 10.1016/S0895-4356(96)00236-3 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 19. Malhotra RK, Indrayan A. A simple nomogram for sample size for estimating sensitivity and specificity of medical tests. Indian J Ophthalmol 2010;58:519–22. 10.4103/0301-4738.71699 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 20. StataCorp . Stata statistical software: release 13. College Station, TX, USA: StataCorp LP, 2013. [Google Scholar]
  • 21. Mittal M, Senn TE, Carey MP. Intimate partner violence and condom use among women: does the information–motivation–behavioral skills model explain sexual risk behavior? AIDS Behav 2012;16:1011–9. 10.1007/s10461-011-9949-3 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 22. Barrett G, Smith SC, Wellings K. Conceptualisation, development, and evaluation of a measure of unplanned pregnancy. J Epidemiol Community Health 2004;58:426–33. 10.1136/jech.2003.014787 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 23. Moreau C, Hall K, Trussell J, et al. Effect of prospectively measured pregnancy intentions on the consistency of contraceptive use among young women in Michigan. Hum Reprod 2013;28:642–50. 10.1093/humrep/des421 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 24. Edelman N, Mercer CH, Cassell J, et al. Differences between women attending specialist sexual health clinics and those attending general practices: implications for targeting STI testing (P3.163). Sex Transm Infect 2017;93:A154. [Google Scholar]
  • 25. Faculty of Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare . Clinical Guidance: Progesterone-only implants. London, UK: Faculty of Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare, 2014. [Google Scholar]
  • 26. Wand H, Guy R, Donovan B, et al. Developing and validating a risk scoring tool for chlamydia infection among sexual health clinic attendees in Australia: a simple algorithm to identify those at high risk of chlamydia infection. BMJ Open 2011;1:e000005. 10.1136/bmjopen-2010-000005 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 27. Facente SN, Pilcher CD, Hartogensis WE, et al. Performance of risk-based criteria for targeting acute HIV screening in San Francisco. PLoS One 2011;6:e21813. 10.1371/journal.pone.0021813 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 28. Duke NN, Sieving RE, Pettingell SL, et al. Associations between health screening questions and sexual risk behaviors in adolescent female clinic patients: identifying a brief question format to yield critical information. Clin Pediatr 2008;47:564–72. 10.1177/0009922808314904 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Associated Data

This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Supplementary Materials

Supplementary data

bmjsrh-2019-200482supp001.pdf (235KB, pdf)

Data Availability Statement

Data are available upon request.


Articles from BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES