A clinic in Cherry Creek recently stopped allowing male patients to swab themselves for sexually transmitted infections, raising concerns that gay and bisexual men could forgo testing, even as rates of certain infections have jumped. Sean O’Connor, a patient who lives in Denver, said UCHealth’s Cherry Creek location was a particularly valuable resource, because it allowed people to have a “standing order,” meaning they didn’t need to see a doctor for a referral to test every time they had a possible exposure. The process was convenient, he said: Patients would receive one swab for the throat and one for the rectum, and could be done taking their own samples in minutes. With the rule change, patients who need that testing have to schedule an appointment with a provider who will swab them, which is both less convenient and more intrusive, O’Connor said. “They’re doing their best to get people in, they just don’t have the capacity,” he said. The machine that analyzes the swabs only allows self-swabbing of the vagina, and labs don’t have the option to ignore the manufacturer’s instructions, said Dan Weaver, spokesman for UCHealth. The manufacturer tests its machines under specific protocols, and the U.S.