141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

290389
An uptake study of an on-line tool for reproductive health care information: The use of bedsider

Wednesday, November 6, 2013 : 8:45 AM - 9:00 AM

Ashley Philliber, MS , Philliber Research Associates, Accord, NY
Susan Philliber, PhD , Philliber Research Associates, Accord, NY
Lauren Ralph, MPH , Bixby Center for Reproductive Health Research and Policy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
Juan Weissenberg , Philliber Research Associates, Accord, NY
Larry Swiader , The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, Washington, DC
The internet has increasingly been recognized as an effective strategy for reproductive health education; however, there are still few studies on its use for HIV/STD and pregnancy prevention among young adults. This paper describes the evaluation of Bedsider, an on-line and mobile device system developed by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy that offers a variety of supports and services including information on birth control, reminders to use birth control and of appointments, and clinic and emergency contraception locators. This study documented use of Bedsider over 12 months among 740 women aged 18 to 29 who were introduced to the site at their local Planned Parenthood clinics. About two-thirds used Bedsider during the year but this may be an undercount since some did not complete a survey or were not able to be tracked. Women who were black, Caribbean, or Latina were more likely to use the site (even though it was not in Spanish) and were also more likely to be in a long-term relationship, under 20 years old, nulliparous, and used the internet at least once a day. Over time, Bedsider users showed increases in knowledge about pregnancy and contraception, reported greater diligence in birth control use, and used more effective methods of birth control. These findings are consistent with others who have found that internet communication may be an effective approach to health education. This paper also describes the response to the research and new research and development.

Learning Areas:
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the evaluation of Bedsider, an on-line and mobile device system developed by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy that offers a variety of supports and services including information on birth control, reminders to use birth control and of appointments, and clinic and emergency contraception locators. Describe the response to the research and new research and development.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been working in the fields of research and evaluation for fifteen years. I currently work on several evaluation projects in the fields of teen and unplanned pregnancy prevention including one that covers five states and almost 80 sites for two years.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.