Let's Talk About Sexual Health

Leandro Mena, MD, MPH is an infectious disease specialist with expertise in the prevention and clinical management of STIs and HIV. He served as the Director of the Division of STD Prevention at CDC.

This video is a joint production of KFF’s GREATER THAN and CDC’s LET’S STOP HIV TOGETHER.

This information is shared for educational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice. The views expressed are those of the featured medical professional and reflect information available to that professional at the time of filming. Always consult a healthcare provider for any personal health decisions.

The marks “CDC” and “Let’s Stop HIV Together” are owned by the US Dept. of Health and Human Services and are used with permission. Use of these logos is not an endorsement by HHS or CDC of any particular product, service, or enterprise.

TRANSCRIPT:
I am Dr. Leandro Mena and here are some ways you can stay on top of your sexual health.

The first thing to start is making sure that you don't have an STI. So, that requires for you to visit your healthcare provider, have a conversation about your sexual health, your sexual behavior, and on that basis, make sure that that healthcare provider is testing you for all the STIs that should be tested for more commonly, gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV.

And if you feel uncomfortable, sometimes it helps if you write down what you want.

I think it's important to ask your healthcare provider to explain things in ways that you can understand. And if your healthcare provider can't do that, maybe it's the time to think about changing healthcare providers.