Evaluation of Free STI Testing Pilot Projects in Lucerne and Zurich, Switzerland (feSTI)

April 2, 2026 updated by: Andrea Farnham, University of Zurich

feSTI: Evaluation of Free HIV and STI Testing and Counselling Services for Young and Disadvantaged Populations in Lucerne and Zurich

The main goal of the observational study is to evaluate participants' satisfaction with free HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing and counselling offered by the cities of Lucerne and Zurich, Switzerland to young people and people with low incomes. Counselling and testing can be accessed without participating in the study arm of the project.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
1800

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Andrea C Farnham, PhD
  • Phone Number: +41 44 634 60 00
  • Email: testi@ebpi.uzh.ch

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

People living in the cities of Lucerne and Zurich, and fullfilling the eligibility criterias of the city programmes either in age or level of income.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • taking part in the pilot programmes
  • understand the study information
  • 16 years of age or older

Exclusion Criteria:

  • not eligible for the pilot programmes
  • not understanding the study information
  • less than 16 years old

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Participants in municipal free HIV and STI counselling and testing pilot programmes
Participants are people accessing the municipal free HIV and STI counselling and testing pilot programmes. People can be eligible by age or low income.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Participants' satisfaction (study-specific satisfaction scale)
Time Frame: 3 years
Participants' satisfaction is measured as the proportion of participants who "agree" or "strongly agree" with satisfaction statements in the post-visit questionnaire. 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree); higher scores indicate greater agreement, thus higher satisfaction.
3 years

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Service capacity/utilisation
Time Frame: 3 years
Number of completed voluntary counselling and testing visits recorded per month across participating sites.
3 years
Access timeliness
Time Frame: 3 years
Median number of days between booking date and appointment date for VCT visits
3 years
Workload healthcare providers
Time Frame: 3 years
Healthcare provider workload assessed via a short survey measuring perceived workload and time burden, assessed using a standardised Likert-type scale (1-5); higher scores indicate greater perceived workload.
3 years
Count diagnosed HIV/STI cases
Time Frame: 3 years
Number of newly diagnosed HIV and STI cases identified through the free voluntary counselling and testing visits across participating sites per reporting period.
3 years
Number of treated STI cases
Time Frame: 3 years
Number of participants who received an STI or HIV diagnosis during the pilot project and subsequently received treatment, defined as antibiotics dispensed at a pharmacy or attendance at a medical appointment at Maihof Praxis Lucerne or Checkpoint Zurich.
3 years
Participants' perception of comfort regarding sexual health
Time Frame: 3 years
Participant-reported comfort regarding sexual health (encompassing physical, emotional, and social wellbeing related to sexuality and relationships), measured on a visual analogue scale from 0 (not comfortable) to 100 (very comfortable). Filled in at clinic while waiting for appointment and again approximately 1 week after the appointment.
3 years
Testing behaviour
Time Frame: 3 years
Testing behaviour assessed via administrative data and self-report. Participants indicate whether this is their first STI/HIV test and, for HIV testing, time since last HIV test. Trends in testing frequency are monitored over the study period.
3 years
Changes in sexual health topics familiarity
Time Frame: 3 years
Participants rate 12 topics on a scale from 1 to 5 (1=never heard of it, 5=very familiar); higher scores indicate greater knowledge. Participants rate their familiarity at the clinic prior to the appointment and approximately 1 week after the appointment. The measure is the change between pre- and post-appointment rating.
3 years
Changes in sexual health knowledge
Time Frame: 3 years
Knowledge assessed using 8 true/false items (total score range: 0-8), administered at the clinic prior to the appointment and again approximately one week post-appointment. Higher scores indicate greater knowledge. The measure is the change in score from pre- to post-appointment.
3 years
Changes in self-efficacy/attitudes
Time Frame: 3 years
Self-efficacy and attitudes assessed using 13 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree), administered at the clinic prior to the appointment and again approximately one week post-appointment. Higher scores indicate greater self-efficacy and more positive attitudes. The measure is the change in score from pre- to post-appointment.
3 years
Information-seeking behaviour
Time Frame: 3 years
Information-seeking behaviour is assessed using a multiple-choice question identifying sources of sexual health information (e.g., internet, healthcare provider, peers). Reported descriptively as frequency and distribution of sources selected; administered at the clinic prior to the appointment only.
3 years
Proportion of low-income eligible participants
Time Frame: 3 years
Proportion of participants holding a KulturLegi card (indicating low-income eligibility) among all enrolled participants; reported descriptively.
3 years
Reach Among Low-Income Eligible Population
Time Frame: 3 years
Proportion of KulturLegi card holders enrolled in the study relative to the total number of KulturLegi cards issued in the catchment area during the study period. Assessed by comparing observed reach against a pre-specified target of ≥5% of the eligible low-income population.
3 years
Comparative Outcomes by Eligibility Group
Time Frame: 3 years
STI/HIV positivity rates, re-testing rates, and knowledge scores compared between low-income eligible participants (KulturLegi card holders) and age-eligible participants. Differences between groups are reported descriptively; regression modelling may be applied to explore associations and inform policy decisions.
3 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Zurich

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Checkpoint Zurich
Checkpoint Lucerne
Test-In Zurich

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 7, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
November 30, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
February 28, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
March 23, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 2, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
April 8, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 8, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 2, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • feSTI
  • BASEC-Nr: 2025-02292 (Other Identifier: Cantonal Ethics Commission Zurich)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be shared. Access to data is restricted to authorised project personnel. For data sharing partcipant consenst needs to be sought.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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