About the program
The Syphilis Point-of-Care (POC) Testing Program was developed in response to the ongoing outbreak of infectious syphilis affecting young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, predominately aged between 15 and 34 years.
The use of POC testing and a ‘test and treat’ model reduces time to treatment initiation and contact tracing, minimises individuals lost to follow-up and provides access to testing for those unwilling or unable to have venepuncture performed.
The Determine™ Syphilis TP test is currently the only syphilis POC test registered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration in Australia and has been selected for use in this program. This test requires only a small drop of blood and provides a result in just 15 minutes.
