title: Community pharmacy and cash reward: a winning combination for chlamydia screening?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To date, the uptake of chlamydia screening in community pharmacies has been limited. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine if a cash reward, offered to both the provider and the consumer of chlamydia screening, increased the uptake of screening in community pharmacies.
  
  
  METHODS
  During 4 weeks in 2011, chlamydia screening and education were offered in four city and two suburban pharmacies to people aged 16-30 years. Those who provided a urine sample for testing, contact details, and completed a brief questionnaire were rewarded with $A10. Positive participants, and their nominated contacts, were offered treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over a period of 751.5 h, 979 testing kits were requested, and 900 (93%) urine samples returned. Using probabilistic linkage methods, we determined that 671/900 (75%) urine samples were from unique individuals. 0.9 unique samples were obtained/hour of screening, 63% of which were provided by men. 19/671 (2.8%; 95% CI 1.7% to 4.4%) people tested positive, 5.2% (95% CI 2.8% to 8.8%) of women, and 1.4% (1.4 0.5 to 3.1) of men. 11/19 (58%) people were contacted and treated-two for suspected pelvic inflammatory disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Providing a cash reward to encourage chlamydia screening in community pharmacies resulted in greater participation rates than previously reported pharmacy-based studies, particularly among men. Easily implemented mechanisms to reduce inappropriate repeat screening, incorrect contact details and effects on pharmacy work flow may enhance the efficiency of this approach.
authors.affiliation: Academic Unit of Internal Medicine, ANU Medical School, Building 4, Level 2, Canberra Hospital, PO Box 11, Woden, ACT 2606, Australia. marian.currie@act.gov.au
authors.forename: Marian J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Currie
authors.forename: Louise S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Deeks
authors.forename: Gabrielle M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Cooper
authors.forename: Sarah J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: Rhian M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: Rendry
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Del Rosario
authors.forename: Jane S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hocking
authors.forename: Francis J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Bowden
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010594:Pharmacies; D012201:Reward; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014556:Urine / Q000382:microbiology; D055815:Young Adult