Failure of many United States Department of Health Web sites to provide accurate information about the female condom

Christina Ventura-DiPersia; Kristina Rodriguez; Elizabeth A Kelvin

doi:10.1016/j.contraception.2015.03.009

Failure of many United States Department of Health Web sites to provide accurate information about the female condom

Contraception. 2015 Jul;92(1):40-5. doi: 10.1016/j.contraception.2015.03.009. Epub 2015 Mar 20.

Authors

Christina Ventura-DiPersia¹, Kristina Rodriguez², Elizabeth A Kelvin³

Affiliations

¹ Doctor of Public Health Program, The Graduate Center, City University of New York School of Public Health, 365 5th Ave, New York, NY 10016; New York Medical College School of Health Sciences and Practice, Department of Epidemiology and Community Health, Valhalla, NY 10595. Electronic address: cventura@gc.cuny.edu.
² Doctor of Public Health Program, The Graduate Center, City University of New York School of Public Health, 365 5th Ave, New York, NY 10016.
³ Doctor of Public Health Program, The Graduate Center, City University of New York School of Public Health, 365 5th Ave, New York, NY 10016; Epidemiology and Biostatistics Program, School of Urban Public Health, Hunter College & CUNY School of Public Health, City University of New York, 2180 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10035; HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies, New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University, 1051 Riverside Drive, Unit 15, New York, NY 10032, USA.

PMID: 25797043
PMCID: PMC5901680
DOI: 10.1016/j.contraception.2015.03.009

Abstract

Uptake of the female condom (FC) in the United States has historically been low; inadequate promotion may be one barrier faced by potential users. We performed a content analysis of state and municipal health department Web sites to describe how the FC is being promoted for pregnancy and disease prevention. We found that only a slim majority (60.8%) of health department Web sites mention the FC at all and those that do include numerous inaccuracies in their messaging. These inaccuracies may discourage uptake of the FC or have a detrimental impact on the experience when using the product for the first time.

Keywords: Contraception; DOH Web sites; Department of health; Female condom; Online health information.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Condoms, Female*
Consumer Health Information / methods
Consumer Health Information / standards*
Family Planning Services / methods
Family Planning Services / standards
Female
Health Communication / methods
Health Communication / standards*
Health Systems Agencies / standards*
Humans
Internet*
United States

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding