More from the Women's Health Activities Update 2006

A few weeks ago we stumbled across the "Washington State Department of Health Community and Family Health Women's Health Activities Update 2006" (MS Word doc, 7 pages, available from the Women's Health Resource Network page of the Washington DOH web site). We did an initial post on their contraception/sterilization program here but want to highlight a few of the other activities keeping your ever friendly and helpful Washington state DOH busy.

Plan B Marketing and Distribution Plan
· FPRH exhibits a tabletop display at professional conventions to raise awareness with practitioners and the general public about the importance of making emergency contraception accessible to women.

· FPRH continues to purchase emergency contraception for distribution through FPRH-funded agencies and appropriate partners. These doses of emergency contraception are provided at no cost to the client. In addition, some public health nurses are distributing emergency contraception to their clients.

(Key talking points at conventions and to clients: This will help reduce abortions; Plan B does not cause abortions. Under NO circumstances are you to use the words "prevents implantation of an embryo."

Sex, Condoms and Abortion Education
· DOH also plans to implement and evaluate community-based media literacy projects throughout the state. The goal is to reduce teen pregnancies by delaying initiation of early and unsafe sexual activity and by raising youth awareness around media (mis)representation of human sexuality. The project-sites will use an abstinence-based media literacy curriculum that will enable youth to deconstruct media messages related to sexual behavior.

(Lesson 1 Objective: Students should know they don't have to have sex but if they do condoms and BC pills are available from the school nurse, their family doctor, or Planned Parenthood. Students should also by able to cite WACs and RCWs that prevent anyone from informing their parents that took condoms or pills. List of Planned Parenthood offices should be distributed at each class. Students should also demonstrate their understanding that they have a right to abortion under Washington law. Extra credit for those who can recite the law from memory. Lesson 2 Objective: Students should be able to identify the funny white man in Italy who wears a hat that looks like a beanie and any man with Southern accent holding a Bible. Accurately deconstructed messages include: People are trying to impose their values on me; If I say "yes" it's ok; I don't have to tell my parents because the nice ladies at Planned Parenthood will help me; Whitey is keeping me down; Are those the same people who got in big trouble for molesting kids? Lesson 3 Objective: Repeat lessons 1 and 2.)

Events Planned for Comprehensive Sex Ed Kick-Off Party and Celebrations
· Upon legislative request in 2004, DOH collaborated with OSPI to create Guidelines for Sexual Health Information and Disease Prevention. The voluntary Guidelines, released in January 2005, provide a framework for medically and scientifically accurate sex education for Washington youth. DOH and OSPI strongly encourage all school districts, community-based organizations, juvenile detention centers, and tribal health programs vested in adolescent health to participate in the distribution of the guidelines.

(Strategy: Experiment on the poor, ignorant, unsupervised and incarcerated first, i.e. the powerless. Work out the kinks. Sneak it into the 'burbs when parents aren't paying attention. Accuse disenters of placing personal views ahead of kids. Don't worry about the "voluntary" qualifier; remember the collectivization of agriculture in Russia was also voluntary at first.)

· DOH partnered with The Center for Health Training, OSPI, and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of Washington to submit a proposal on adolescent reproductive health. The Center for Health Training was successful in securing the CDC grant funding that will provide $150,000 per year for the next five years. The goal of the grant is to reduce the rates of unintended pregnancies, STDs, and HIV infection among Washington youth. During the initial year of the grant, funds will be used to provide technical assistance, consultation, and training to three local communities around comprehensive sex education and the use of the DOH-OSPI Guidelines for Sexual Health Information and Disease Prevention.

(NEA, DOH, PP, OSPI, PATH, BOP, ASHA, WMA, FPRH, UW are all on board. Please send us your finance code so we can make sure your grant money is properly coded and accurately credited to your budget.)