Say Something toolkit: Two survivors empower community health educators by creating an innovative, multimedia toolkit to educate women about cervical cancer prevention

Background: Cervical cancer is preventable with use of new screening and vaccine tools. Women in community settings need current, easy-to-understand, actionable information on how to best prevent cervical cancer. Previous research shows a lack of knowledge about HPV, screening and vaccination. To date, public health education efforts targeting cervical cancer prevention have not included comprehensive and engaging materials for community health educators. To address this unmet need Cervical Cancer survivors and activists Christine Baze (PopSmear.org) and Tamika Felder (Tamika and Friends, Inc.) partnered to create the Say Something project. Study: A cervical cancer prevention toolkit was developed that includes a video, original music, educational materials, a PowerPoint presentation, posters for publicizing Say Something events, t-shirts, media guides and web resources. The video captures both women sharing their stories of survival, interwoven with footage of clinicians discussing HPV and prevention options. Materials are available on the web for easy reproduction for large groups. Results: To date over 500 toolkits have been disseminated to community groups around the country. Women's health advocacy groups have been partners in disseminating materials to their members. Over 3000 women have participated in Say Something workshops. Evaluations of content and format from have been extremely positive. Conclusions: The Say Something toolkit is an example of how to integrate print, video, music, and presentation tools to provide community health educators with a cohesive package of evidence-based, interactive, educational materials. Say Something is also demonstrates the impact that survivors working with clinicians can have in community education efforts.