MEN: Male Education Network - Male Reproductive Health Program

Tapestry Health's, Title X-funded Male Reproductive Health Program: MEN (Male Education Network) is a component of the agency's Family Planning and Community Health Services in western Massachusetts . The goals of this project are to recruit and train male Peer Educators/Recruiters who, in turn, provide community education sessions reaching males in collaboration with partnering organizations; provide outreach and client recruitment shifts reaching males; and provide reproductive health counseling and clinical services to males. The program's education component encompasses both individual and group sessions, that include anatomy and physiology; sexual identity, development, behavior, and responsibility; contraceptive awareness and methods; STI and HIV prevention and counseling; reproductive health communication and relationships; prostate and testicular cancer awareness. Through qualitative and quantitative data the program has shown an increase in sexual and reproductive health knowledge as well as behavioral and attitudinal change in personal sexual and reproductive wellness including HIV/STD and pregnancy prevention methods as well as a 32% increase in usage of Tapestry Health's Family Planning services by males over the past three years. By identifying, recruiting, and serving low-income, uninsured and underinsured males for comprehensive family planning services this program addresses key goals and priorities of the Title X program. These goals and priorities include Title X Program Priorities related to expanded access to family planning services to adolescents, service delivery to individuals from low-income families, and the provision of outreach to hard-to-reach and vulnerable populations