A campaign designed by young people has helped to achieve an 11% reduction in teenage pregnancy in East Sussex.
‘Which one is easier to carry?’ was the concept chosen by young people to encourage them to take responsibility for their sexual health. It asks teenagers to make a simple decision – carry a condom or carry a baby.
England and Wales has some of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in Western Europe. To help combat the issue East Sussex County Council and the local NHS commissioned a public health campaign developed for the target audience, by the target audience.
Trudy Mills, Commissioning Manager for Maternity, Children and Young people said:“Everything from the slogans to the campaign materials was decided by the young people of East Sussex.”
“I’m absolutely delighted with the programme. We’ve reached a vulnerable, hard-to-reach population and empowered them to take responsibility for their health.”
After extensive research, the campaign ran during 2009, and continued throughout 2010.
Rates of teenage pregnancy fell by 11%, and 69% of people said that the campaign made them think more about safe sex.
The campaign, produced by 90TEN Healthcare, picked-up the Best Public Health Initiative at the 2011 Communiqué Awards. The campaign also won the Judges’ Special Award for Innovation.
The judges’ feedback read: “It’s hard to find any fault at all with this superb campaign. Not only was it innovative but it was brave – devolving the decision making to the target audience.”
Paul Tanner of 90TEN Healthcare said: “We needed to emphasise ‘joint responsibility’ for both males and females, and tap into the fears, concerns and mindset of young people to really change behaviours. Simply ‘raising awareness’ was not enough. We are delighted the campaign proved successful.”
The campaign – which included outreach in schools and colleges and street theatre to engage local teenagers – has also been shortlisted for the Grey Healthcare Cause Marketing Award at PMEA Awards. The winner of that award will be announced in late November.
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Notes to editors:
In East Sussex there were 373 conceptions in 2008 and 332 conceptions in 2009. Data for 2010 is not released until early 2012.
About 90TEN
90TEN is an award-winning healthcare communications consultancy specialising in integrating PR, medical education and research techniques to deliver solutions that help its clients exceed their marketing objectives and maximise their PR investment. 90TEN’s programmes reach and mobilise healthcare providers and patients to provide them with access to targeted health information that empowers them to effectively manage their health or provision of health services.
For further information, please contact:
NHS Sussex Communications
Office 01273 403550
E-mail jamie.whitburn@esdwpct.nhs.uk
