Contact tracing is an essential part of the health response to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and blood-borne viruses (BBVs) in Australia.
We know that finding out you’ve been exposed to an STD is an uncomfortable but familiar experience for gay and bi+ men. Additionally, talking to your doctor or a health care professional about your sexual practices and intercourse can be a little daunting.
We’re here to clarify contact tracing — what it means, when it’s used, and your rights and privacy — so that if you get a call from a contact tracer, you’ll know what to expect and hopefully feel comfortable helping them protect your community.
Contact tracing — also known as partner notification — is the process of identifying and contacting people who have been exposed to contamination.
Partner notification is used in Australia to respond to STIs and BBV in the community. Each state focuses on specific infections and uses contact tracing to help manage them. Infections for which some gay and bi+ types may be diagnosed include mpox (monkey pox), HIV, syphilis and gonorrhea.
Contact tracing plays an important role in managing the spread of infections. Effective partner notification can reduce transmission, prevent re-infection and enable early treatment of STIs and BBVs. It can also help detect asymptomatic infections (when a person has no symptoms).
We spoke to Jane Hooker from the Victorian Government Department of Health Communicable Diseases, Public Health Protection, Practice & Treatmentwho ran us through their partner notification process:
- The community member will be tested for STIs and HIV and called back to the testing service if their results are positive for STIs.
- The doctor will discuss the diagnosis with the community member and ask if they want support in contacting their recent sexual partners.
- If the community member does not need support, they can contact their recent sexual partners themselves or through an anonymous service (more on this below).
- If the community member asks for support, the doctor will offer support themselves or discuss whether they would like a referral to the state partner alert team.
- The partner notification team—often a team of trained nurses with STD and HIV, mental health, and LGBTQ community experience—will contact the community member to obtain details about recent sexual partners. They may ask some questions to find out who you should contact.
How this conversation might go:
Andres: “Hi, this is Andres.”
Tan: “Hi Andres, I’m Tan, a health worker calling on behalf of the Perth Sexual Health Clinic. Is now the right time to talk?’
Andres: “Yes, I just got home from work.”
Tan: “Great. Has your clinic doctor advised you that you need some help communicating with your sexual partners about your recent gonorrhea infection?’
Andres: “Oh yeah, I didn’t feel comfortable doing it myself” (although you don’t have to give a reason if you don’t want to).
Tan: “Don’t worry, Andres. As part of the process, we will ask you about your sexual partners and any details you have, and we may then contact them and let them know they need to have a sexual health test. We will always keep your name and all other information confidential when communicating with your contacts.”
Andres: “Okay, thanks.”
Tan: “Well, for this infection, we need to contact your sexual partners either for the last two months or from your last STD test. Could you help me with these details?’
Andres: “Yeah, sure — I wrote them down on my phone… Well, it was Carlos and Ali and then two guys on Grindr, but I don’t remember their names.”
Tan: “Thank you, Andres. This is a great start! Do you have a phone number for the names you gave me? And for the guys on Grindr, do you have any of their contact info?”
Andres: “Yes, I have their numbers… I just looked at my Grindr favorites and found that one of them has an Instagram link… and the other one’s handle is @Parap Otter🍑”
- The team will contact their partners (via calls, texts, social media, dating apps, email, etc.), inform contacts of their exposure and offer support, testing and treatment. They won’t bombard your contacts, but you will find the best way to get in touch with them. They will only contact someone through one channel at a time and not all at the same time.
Some important things to know about contact tracing:
• You can request to remain anonymous throughout the process and contact tracers will keep your name and all other details confidential.
• It’s always voluntary — you can opt out at any time
• You can choose to notify your partners yourself if you feel comfortable
• Translation services may be available in your preferred language.
Keep track of some basic contact information (name, phone number, or social media) for people you’re having sex with — even a Grindr handle can be helpful. That way, if you get an STD or are contacted by a tracker, it will be easier to identify who else may need to be notified.
Stay on top of your sexual health by getting regular HIV and STD tests and watching out for mpox symptoms. Find your nearest sexual health service with our interactive map.
Anonymous services to tell someone you have an STD
It’s never fun to tell someone you may have passed on an STD. See our complete guide to telling someone you have an STD. If you have their contact information and feel comfortable sending a message yourself, go ahead and do your own contact tracing. If you have an email or number but want to send the message anonymously, many services do just that:
• The Drama Downunder
• Let them know
• You better know — Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service
• Tell Me — a message generator to tell someone you have an STD.
