Health chiefs are stepping up their campaign against sexually transmitted diseases by offering young people the chance to win a holiday if they take a test for chlamydia.
One in 10 people aged 16 to 24 are thought to have chlamydia and Sunderland Teaching Primary Care Trust (TPCT) is trying to get as many as possible to be tested for the disease.
And now they have teamed up with Foundry Media to offer a holiday f
or four friends who have all taken the "pee in the pot" test.
Speaking on behalf of Sunderland TPCT, Danny Ruta, Newcastle's Director of Public Health, said: "I can't stress enough what serious consequences having undiagnosed chlamydia could have for a young person. It could devastate their future plans to have a family.
"Quite rightly we have tough targets for the number of young people the NHS must screen, and we have been doing lots of things to encourage young people to test.
"This holiday competition is a tried and tested way commercial organisations market to young people and given the serious implications undiagnosed chlamydia can have, the NHS must give it a go."
To be entered into the competition to win £2,000-worth of holiday vouchers, the young person is required to take a chlamydia test and encourage three friends to test.
Each friend fills out a competition entry form and they enter the competition together. The winners are a group of four friends who have all taken a test and win a £500 holiday voucher each.
The competition builds on work already carried out on Wearside, including visits to colleges, universities and nightclubs.
Neil Foster, marketing manager of Foundry Media, said: "A £2,000 holiday for you and three mates is one great reason why you should enter the competition and get tested today.
"Win or lose the biggest prize has to be the relief of finding you're clear of chlamydia – and quickly getting it sorted if you're not."
If left untreated, chlamydia, which often has no symptoms, has serious consequences and can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease which can leave women infertile and men sterile.
However, chlamydia is easily diagnosed through a simple urine test and easily treated with a free short course of antibiotics.
When a young person takes a test, a sample of their urine is sent off free of charge to a laboratory and the results take a few days to come through. People can say whether they want to receive their results by text, telephone or post.Specialist health advisers from the NHS are available to help people tell their sexual partners that they too may have chlamydia.
To enter to competition, order a testing kit or for further information, go to www.checkyourbits.org or by call 265 7014.
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