Finding teens in TheirSpace: Using internet social networking sites to increase access to family planning

Conducting outreach is an important part of informing teens about family planning services and bringing them into the family planning clinic. Social networking sites (SNS), such as MySpace, have become increasingly significant forms of communication and information-gathering in the lives of youth. As these sites gain increasing popularity, some family planning clinics have begun to use these tools to reach teens with public health messages. As part of an evaluation of 21 clinics funded by the California Office of Family Planning to increase access to services for at-risk youth, 5 clinics were studied to gain a better understanding of the use of SNS and to determine the impact of web-based outreach relative to other efforts. An analysis of the clinics' MySpace profiles revealed that in addition to providing information about their family planning services, clinics include reproductive health messages, peer provider opportunities, and notices of community events. Clinics use youth-friendly elements such as popular music, photo slide shows, and interactive experiences in order to enhance their profiles. In-depth interviews with clinic staff reveal that certain resources, such as having the technical knowledge to maintain the site and time to update content, are necessary to implement and maintain web-based outreach. Additionally, clinics face challenges in monitoring the sites' user-created content. Although assessing the impact of web-based outreach presents challenges, the recognition by clinics and teens alike regarding the unique strengths of web-based outreach merits increased attention to this topic. Borrowing tools from other fields, such as online marketing, may be particularly informative.