What happens when you visit us in clinic

You can make an appointment by calling us on 0191 4028168 between the hours of 08.45 am and 19:00 pm. You will speak to a member of our team who will assess your needs and advise on the best package of care for you.

You might feel embarrassed, but there’s no need – staff at our clinics are used to providing specialist advice, contraception, testing for all kinds of infections. Patients are not judged, and we will explain everything to you and make you feel at ease.

You can attend sexual health services whether you’re male or female, whatever your age, regardless of whether you have STI symptoms. If you’re under 16, the service is still confidential, and the clinic won’t tell your parents, guardians or carers. 

If we suspect you or another young person is at risk of harm, we might need to inform other healthcare services, but we will talk to you before we do this.

When you go to a sexual health clinic, you’ll be asked for your name and some contact details.

You don’t have to give your real name if you don’t want to. If you do, it will be kept confidential. Your GP won’t be told about your visit without your permission.

If you have tests and the results aren’t available during your visit, the clinic will need to contact you later, so give them the correct contact details.

The clinic will ask how you want to receive your results. They are usually given to you by text or over the phone. 

You will see a doctor or a nurse when you attend who will ask you about your medical and sexual history.
Be prepared to answer questions about your sex life, including  

• when you last had sex
• whether you’ve had unprotected sex
• whether you have any symptoms
• why you think you might have an infection

You can ask to see a female or male doctor or nurse if you prefer, but you might have to wait longer than usual for one to become available.

(We ask everyone these set of questions to help with your care so please don’t think we are just asking you)

Our doctors or nurses will tell you what tests they think you need. They will explain what is going on and why they are suggesting these tests. If you’re not sure about anything, ask them to explain.

The tests might involve:

• a urine (pee) sample
• a blood sample
• swabs from the urethra (the tube urine comes out of)
• an examination of your genitals
• if you’re female, swabs from the vagina, which you can usually do yourself

Testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea usually requires only a urine sample or a self-taken swab for a woman. Testing for HIV and syphilis needs a blood sample.

Tests for herpes aren’t usually done unless you have sores on your genitals or anus. In this case, a swab will be taken from a sore. This will be uncomfortable for a moment.

With some tests, you can get the results – and treatment, if you need it – on the same day from us here at South Tyneside Sexual Health. For others, you might have to wait for a week or 2. If this is the case, we will check how you would prefer to receive your results.

If you test positive for an STI, you will be asked to come back to the clinic to talk about your results and the treatments you need.

Many STIs can be cured with antibiotics. Some infections, such as HIV, have no cure, but there are treatments available to which we can provide to help you manage your condition. Our staff can advise you on these and put you in touch with a counsellor on site to support you. 

If possible, tell your sexual partner and any ex-partners so they can get tested and treated as well.

If you don’t want to do this, we can do this for you – it’s called partner notification, and we will not reveal who you are.

We will soon be introducing an online booking system. Please check back soon.