Hidden away in the labyrinthine corridors of St Mary's hospital, just next to Paddington station, lurks a secret office. From the outside, the regulation magnolia paint gives no clue to what goes on there. There is reason for the cloak and dagger approach: this is London's first health clinic for male prostitutes. The clinic has already seen some male sex industry workers - the clinic's preferred term for male prostitutes - since it began to operate full time in February.
The men range from escort agency workers through to rent boys. Although many are aware of the risks of HIV and Aids, their knowledge of other sexual diseases is often limited. Few use condoms for oral sex, although there is a risk of some diseases being transmitted that way. While escort workers tend to use them for anal sex, the clinic discovered that among rent boys, condom use is relatively low, with fewer than half using them. Unlike escorts, rent boys will often be picked up by a client without a word spoken, just through a series of meaningful looks.
The silence may heighten the excitement for the customer, so to suddenly ask them to use a condom, having said nothing up until then, would be difficult. This is the first clinic to offer a specialist service for men who sell sex to other men. It aims to provide general advice on sexual health - not just about Aids and HIV - to men who would otherwise find it difficult to access mainstream services.
Funded by North Thames regional health authority, it is in line with government targets of reducing the spread of sexually transmitted diseases STDs , especially gonorrhoea. Latest Department of Health figures show gonorrhoea is at its lowest level for 75 years, down to 38 cases per , people and well inside government targets. Cases of non-specific genital infection and chlamydia have also fallen, although there has been a 5 per cent increase in herpes. Wart infection and syphilis cases have remained at previous levels.
But because male prostitutes are having sex so frequently, they are more at risk of picking up STDs and unwittingly passing them.
