Developing culturally relevant educational materials about emergency contraception

Planned Parenthood of New York City (PPNYC) sought to increase awareness of Emergency Contraception (EC) among Anglophone Caribbean and Mexican immigrant communities in Brooklyn as part of a three-year targeted EC education and outreach initiative. The program included message and materials development, training of PPNYC clinical and education staff, training and technical assistance for Brooklyn-based community-based organizations (CBOs), and immigrant outreach through workshops and materials distribution.

This presentation will describe the process and outcomes of creating culturally relevant materials based on focus group research conducted from June to October 2007. EC messages and material development was informed by data from three focus groups of women in the two target communities (n = 25) as well as CBO staff who serve them (n = 12). These initial three groups explored Caribbean and Mexican women's knowledge and concerns about sexual and reproductive health and EC. Qualitative themes emerged related to cultural beliefs that could be favorable to the use of EC as a back-up birth control option, in addition to information about barriers to seeking and using EC. Data revealed concerns about safety, effectiveness, cost, and beliefs that EC is an abortifacient, as well as positive attitudes about EC once participants understood that it does not cause abortion. Based on these findings, PPNYC staff developed culturally relevant messages, and then assembled two additional focus groups (n = 25) to conduct message-testing. Validated messages and materials will be presented.