As the romantically inclined and the amorous among us will know, the 14 February is an important date every year. They might not know that not only is it Valentine’s Day; February 14 is National Condom Day.
National Condom Day is an annual campaign to encourage the use of condoms and promote safer sex practices, celebrated by the health promotion community. This year’s theme was Yours, Mine and Ours, and featured cute and approachable graphics of condoms and dams to facilitate easier discussions around safer sex and remove the taboo associated with these conversations.
Condoms are 98% effective at preventing pregnancy while being the only form of contraception that can also prevent STI transmission. This year, Family Planning Tasmania again partnered with the WA-based sexual and reproductive health organisation Sexual Health Quarters to produce approachable artwork that helps guide conversations on condom and dam use and safer sex practices. Read our previous articles about the National Condom Day theme here >>.
Condom packs mailed out across the state
This year, we featured an online form in our National Condom Day article where people around Tasmania could request condom packs to be sent to them for free. Many individuals opted for this service, as well as multiple organisations who requested condom packs and resources.
Every year, our volunteers pack hundreds of condoms and individual sachets of lube into cardboard condom packs. The packs have instructions on how to use condoms and provide a protective pouch to store condoms, and reduce the embarrassment of carrying condoms. Thanks to our volunteers for helping us get free condoms out to Tasmanians. This year, 1000 free condom packs were given out over the state as part of National Condom Day.
Condom packs & resources travel to West Coast of Tasmania
The West Coast of Tasmania can be a very isolated place to live, and people who live here don’t have the same access to specialist services and health services as Tasmanians who live in cities. In an effort to provide health information to these regional areas, we have been in contact with the neighbourhood houses on the West Coast – Roseberry, Zeehan and Queenstown. Thank you to the wonderful staff at these neighbourhood houses for participating and helping us spread the message of safer sex.
Image above: Hellyer College School Nurse Melanie Gaul plays ‘What will you catch’.
Family Planning Tasmania drops into Launceston and Hellyer Colleges for National Condom Day
Once again Family Planning Tasmania partnered with Hellyer College to run a National Condom Event which was aimed at raising the awareness of Safer Sex, STI prevention and condom and dam use within their student population.
In a National Condom Day first, this year we also held a stall at Launceston College, with Launceston-based clinical nurse Deb attending giving students an opportunity to ask any sexual health-related questions directly to our nurse, grab some free condoms and have a chat. Sharing a table with youth mental health organisation headspace and Lauceston College Student Assistance made the stall a one-stop-shop for students to talk about their health.
In Burnie, Hellyer College School Nurse Melanie Gaul and Family Planning Tasmania staff member Judy Brown ran an activity designed to challenge the students’ fishing skills and test their knowledge of sexual safety and sexual health services available to them. It was Melanie’s first National Condom Day event at Hellyer College.
52 students actively engaged in the activity whilst other student were seen utilising the NCD information through the QR code which was made available on the tables around the student cafeteria.
Students whom participated thanked organisers for the information they received and Hellyer College teaching staff whom visited the event were very supportive of the information and experience being offered.
Image below: Nurse Deb attends National Condom Day at Launceston College.
