Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT) is the clinical practice of indirectly treating the sex partners of patients diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (e.g., chlamydia, gonorrhea) through the dispensing or prescribing of a drug or other treatment without the health care provider first examining the partner. The goal of this therapy is to reduce the patient's risk of repeat infection from exposure to untreated partners. For details, read CDC's EPT guidelines.
Traditional strategies such as provider-assisted referral and encouragement of partner to seek medical treatment are preferred when available; however, EPT is an effective alternative when a partner is unable or unlikely to seek treatment.
CERNER PROVIDERS: A generic patient name: Expedited Partner Therapy is now available to assist in the delivery of care when the partner’s name is unknown or does not have an existing medical record in PowerChart or FirstNet. For details, including qualifications and workflow, read the Expedited Partner Therapy job aid.