title: STI service delivery in British Columbia, Canada; providers' views of their services to youth.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Little is known about service providers' knowledge, attitudes, and experiences in relation to the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of individuals seeking care for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and how they influence the delivery of services. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of STI care providers and the ways they approached their practice.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used a qualitative approach drawing on methods used in thematic analysis. Individual semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 21 service providers delivering STI services in youth clinics, STI clinics, reproductive health clinics, and community public health units in British Columbia (BC), Canada.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Service providers' descriptions of their activities and roles were shaped by a number of themes including specialization, scarcity, and maintaining the status quo. The analysis suggests that service providers perceive, at times, the delivery of STI care to be inefficient and inadequate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings from this study identify deficits in the delivery of STI services in BC. To understand these deficits, more research is needed to examine the larger health care structure within which service providers work, and how this structure not only informs and influences the delivery of services, but also how particular structural barriers impinge on and/or restrict practice.
authors.affiliation: University of British Columbia (UBC) Faculty of Applied Science/Nursing, 302 - 6190 Agronomy Road, Vancouver V6T 1Z3, Canada. cindy.masaro@gmail.com
authors.forename: Cindy L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Masaro
authors.forename: Joy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chabot
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shoveller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D016497:Adolescent Health Services / Q000592:standards / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001955:British Columbia; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003150:Community Health Workers / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology*; D003219:Confidentiality; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology*; D054625:Healthcare Disparities / Q000208:ethnology / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D057545:Social Stigma; D013038:Specialization / Q000592:standards