Public urged to 'Think Contraception'

[Posted: Mon 20/10/2008 by Deborah Condon www.irishhealth.com]

At least one in four sexually active 18-24 year olds do not use contraception consistently, the Crisis Pregnancy Agency (CPA) has said.

It has just launched a major new sexual health promotion campaign aimed at encouraging consistent contraception use among young adults.

The ‘Think Contraception’ campaign promotes the message that ‘Nobody else is going to do the thinking for you’ with regards to contraceptive use. Research commissioned by the agency found that 26% of 18-25 year olds did not report consistent use of contraception in the last year.

Furthermore 42% of women in this age group who became pregnant described it as a crisis pregnancy, while people in the 20-29 age group have the highest rate of sexually transmitted infections.

“The new ‘Think Contraception’ campaign addresses many of the findings of Irish research in this area and highlights the importance of correctly and consistently using contraception to prevent unplanned pregnancies and protect against STIs,” explained Katharine Bulbulia, chairperson of the CPA.

The campaign is aimed primarily at 18-25 year olds and incorporates television, radio and online advertising. The website, http://www.thinkcontraception.ie, also provides key information on all aspects of sexual health, including contraception, STIs and fertility.

According to the CPA, the new campaign ‘will adopt a more direct approach than the previous ‘Think Contraception’ advertising and will identify contraceptive methods for the first time’.

The agency has a self-imposed watershed of 9pm on the campaign.

“The new ‘Think Contraception’ campaign aims to encourage young men and women to take personal responsibility for their sexual health with the message that ‘Nobody else is going to do the thinking for you,’” added Caroline Spillane, CPA director.

More information on sexual health is also available at…http://www.irishhealth.com/clin/sexual_health/