In the United States there are approximately 20 million new cases each year, about half of which occur among youth ages 15-24 years (2016). STI testing is an important part of sexual health, however, research shows that due to issues with access to care, stigma, a lack of education and misconceptions about STI’s, adolescents are less likely to actively seek testing (Gabarron & Wynn, 2016). How can we help make testing normalized, and increase awareness of the importance of regular testing? Social media and mobile technology are constantly consumed by youth and therefore represent a key outlet for providing health messages or interventions to adolescents.
References:
Gabarron, E., & Wynn, R. (2016). Use of social media for sexual health promotion: A scoping review. Global Health Action, 9(1), 32193. doi:10.3402/gha.v9.32193
STD Awareness Month. (2016, February 24). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/std/sam/gyt-2015.htm
Social media is a large part daily life for teens and young adults. Social media “creates opportunity for both corporate brands and health promotion agencies to target and engage with young audiences in unprecedented ways” The impact can be positive and negative. Health agencies need to aim for creating interventions and campaigns(Dunlop, 2016).
Dunlop, S. (2016). Marketing to youth in the digital age: The promotion of unhealthy products and health promoting behaviours on social media.
Media and Communication, 4(3), 35-49. Retrieved from: https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/viewFile/522/522
This is a fantastic example of considering a target audience when attempting to send health messages to the public. Social media is an easily accessible and digestible platform to reach a large quantity of 15-24 year-olds. It is less likely for this population of people to see ads in the local newspaper or yellow pages. Do you think social media campaigns would be similarly successful with other health related topics such as obesity or diabetes?
I absolutely think that with the proper marketing, research and availability of resources, social media has the ability to inform and influence any health related topics. There are social media campaigns that I believe are successful in the way that they are presented. I currently am looking at a marketing campaign called “Yes Means Test.” Ultimately it is saying- if you’re going to say yes to having sex, say yes to getting tested too! It’s got great graphics, none of those old 80’s looking couples on the material, fun colors and is very appealing to young adults.
Social media can reach a broader audience while providing privacy for the end user. The use of social media platforms is emerging and the complexities with privacy laws are still being explored. A meta analysis study found that “traditionally hard-to-reach groups, e.g., MSM and adolescents, may be more likely to engage with social media rather than with more conventional public health communication channels, creating a new avenue to address sensitive health issues. A significant proportion of the interventions reviewed (40%) concentrated on targeting populations with increased risk of STIs, a topic often avoided in public settings” (Charles-Smith, L., et al, 2015). I believe social media campaigns will gain a huge momentum and this will lead to more research exploring the impact of social media campaigns on chronic conditions.
References:
Charles-Smith, L., et al,. (2015). Using social media for actionable disease surveillance and outbreak management: A systematic literature review. PLOS ONE. Retrieved from:
doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0139701