Dear Partners in Prevention,

As STD Awareness Month in April approaches quickly, we at CDC would like to share our planned theme to assist you in your preparations. This year, we are focusing our efforts on the relationship between healthcare providers and patients with the 2018 theme: Treat Me Right.

For providers, ‘Treat Me Right’ is an opportunity to ensure that they have the needed tools to properly detect and treat infections. It also, however, presents an opportunity to share resources about how to build door-to-door trust with patients that extends from the waiting room to the exam room, as well as how to engage with patients in a way that makes them feel heard and respected.

This year’s theme also opens the door to encourage patients to learn about STDs and STD prevention, but just as importantly, to empower them to ask their provider what they can do – and how they can work together – to stay safe and healthy.

With STDs at a record high in the United States, working together has never been more important. That’s true for providers and patients, yes, but also for us here at CDC, and in health departments and community-based organizations.

CDC’s STD Awareness Month website and materials are currently in development and will be posted on the CDC website when ready. I will send out a message with further information as soon as the website goes live.

I am so grateful for the important work that you do, and I humbly ask that you once again join us in using this year’s theme to place vital STD prevention messages and resources in the hands of those who need them most.

Thank you for your unwavering commitment to STD Prevention.

Best Regards,

Gail Bolan, MD
Director, Division of STD Prevention
National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis,
STD and TB Prevention
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention