Abacus Sexual Health Service

In response to Coronavirus, this service has made some changes – for updated service information click here.

Due to high demand on the service, if following telephone triage your symptoms are deemed non-urgent/routine, you may be asked to call back the following day to speak with a clinician.

Due to the current national lockdown we have had to review our processes and make some temporary changes in respect of patients who do not reside in the Liverpool area. You may be asked to contact your local host service or GP where possible for smears, contraception methods requiring you to travel to a clinic appointment and STI testing. If you do contact our Triage service we will endeavour to be of service, but please note we may not be able to assist you at this time.

Please monitor our website for further updates.

Abacus Sexual Health Service Page

Advice for women seeking contraception, abortion and other sexual and reproductive healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic can be found here.

Abacus is still open but has changed the way the service operates to provide as many services remotely as possible. Routine drop in sessions are not currently available.

There is a telephone triage and consultation service in place which is supported by a postal service for the delivery of supplies.

Please call Abacus telephone triage on: 0151 247 6555

Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.30pm

From 1 August: Saturday 9.30am to 4.30pm (this is a limited service for pre-booked appointments and urgent issues following telephone triage first - emergency contraception, acute symptoms)

Following the telephone consultation, if a face-to-face consultation is urgently needed, service users will be offered an appointment at:

Due to clinical training, all Abacus clinics will be closed until 1.00pm on the following dates:

Wednesday 13 January 2021
Wednesday 10 February 2021
Wednesday 3 March 2021 – joint with Axess
Wednesday 14 April 2021
Wednesday 12 May 2021
Wednesday 9 June 2021
Wednesday 14 July 2021
Wednesday 11 August 2021
Wednesday 1 September 2021 – joint with Axess
Wednesday 13 October 2021
Wednesday 10 November 2021
Wednesday 8 December 2021

Phone lines will open at 13:00

Central Abacus

The Beat, 6 David Lewis Street, L1 4AP.

If a face-to-face consultation is needed, please do not bring anyone with you as due to the requirements for social distancing there is not the space in the waiting room.

Do not attend the clinic if you have either:

A new, continuous cough
A high temperature
Loss of sense of taste or smell
Do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. Use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do: Only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

For Information about overdue change of an IUD/IUS or implant please see here.

If you want to order a postal Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea, HIV and Syphilis self-testing kit please click here.

STI Tests by Post

You can now order tests for Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea, HIV and Syphilis by clicking on the link. If you are Liverpool resident and you want to order a postal kit. If you are not a Liverpool resident please access the relevant services in your area by clicking on the red banner and the information is at the bottom of the page.

We routinely offer HIV testing and would recommend you test for HIV.

If you do have any symptoms or require rectal and throat swabs or further blood tests, please contact the Triage Line on 0151 247 6555.

Please note due to the current circumstances we are experiencing delays in sending out testing kits. If you have not received a kit within 3 weeks please contact us on 0151 247 6520.

Test Results – due to COVID testing there is a delay of between 3 or 4 weeks for results. If you have returned your testing kit and have not had your results in 4 weeks, please contact us on 0151 247 6520.

For Implant insertion/ change or removal:

Telephone the Abacus triage line on 0151 247 6555 to arrange a telephone consultation. Following a telephone consultation you will be booked a clinic appointment for your procedure.

For removal of an existing IUD/IUS or problems with an existing IUD/IUS/Implant or for an Emergency IUD

Telephone the Abacus triage line on 0151 247 6555 to arrange a telephone consultation. Following a telephone consultation you will be booked a clinic appointment for your procedure if indicated.

For IUD/IUS insertion or change

If you are a patient at Jubilee Medical Centre, Ellergreen Medical Centre, Langbank Medical Centre, Gillmoss Medical Centre, Moss Way Surgery or Fir Tree Medical Centre, there is a service available for coil (IUC) and implant fittings at these surgeries. Please contact your own GP surgery and ask for a telephone appointment with the Network Coil & Implant Service

Abacus has started the phased return of IUD/IUS insertion/change procedures and are offering a limited number of appointments for this. There is a high demand for these procedures and we are working to clear the backlog caused by the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic so please bear with us. Appointments are released on a weekly basis each Wednesday.

Call the Abacus triage line on 0151 247 6555

If IUC insertion or change appointments are not available when you call you will be offered a telephone consultation to discuss interim contraception or if not needed advised to phone the next Wednesday.

If IUC insertion or change appointments are available:

You will be added to the list for an IUD/IUS counselling telephone consultation.
Following this telephone consultation if appropriate you will be booked an IUC fitting appointment and you will be sent a text message with a link to an online counselling video and a link to a self-assessment form.
Please ensure you watch the video and complete and submit the self-assessment form prior to attending for your IUC fitting appointment as we may not be able to insert the IUD/IUS unless we feel it is safe to do so and that you are aware of the risks and benefits.

The online counselling video can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHRYE2FsXmc

You must use a reliable method of contraception up until the IUD/IUS is fitted or have NO SEX for at least three weeks before the appointment or NO SEX from the start of the period before the appointment.

If you need your IUS/IUD replacing, you must have NO SEX for the seven days before your appointment.

Following a fitting of an IUD/IUC , please click on this link for further information

Sexual Problems

We can only see people who are resident in Liverpool, so please ask your nurse, GP, hospital specialist or counsellor to refer you. Professionals can call Abacus telephone triage on: 0151 247 6555. Find out more

Are you experiencing gender dysphoria, or questioning your gender identity?

For information about support that may be available to you, please click on this link to our Trans Support Service https://www.merseycare.nhs.uk/our-services/physical-health-services/trans-support-service-tss/

Do you need to cancel or reschedule your Abacus Appointment?

Cancelling appointments: Please note the facility to cancel and reschedule appointments is only available for routine appointments, not for urgent face to face consultations arranged after a same day telephone consultation.

Please give at least 24hrs notice if you wish to cancel/ reschedule your appointment so we can offer the appointment to another patient. If you cancel on the day of your appointment we will not be able to reschedule it. You will need to repeat the triage process.

To cancel your appointment call us on 0151 247 6555 or alternatively click on https://www.merseycare.nhs.uk/our-services/physical-health-services/abacus/cancel-appointment-form/ to complete and submit the form.

Armistead Centre

To make sure our resources reach the areas in most need, the Armistead centre is temporally changing the way the service operates.

Armistead group sessions are temporarily suspended, but support is still available via the Armistead helpline.

Armistead Helpline: 0151 247 6560

Monday to Friday 9.30 am to 4.30pm

If you require contraception, sexual health testing or screening please call the Abacus phone triage service:

Please call the Abacus phone triage service: 0151 247 6555

Monday to Friday: 9.30 am to 4.30 pm

So to Speak

The So to Speak team are temporarily suspending attending schools and young people’s services to deliver sexual health education sessions.

If you require information regarding services and arranging education and training sessions in the future please call: 0151 247 6500.