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THE DEBATE
Are condoms for kids the answer?
Every day seems to bring a new alert over soaring
rates of sexually transmitted infections — and young people may be most
at risk. BBC News Online asks whether giving teenagers easy access to
condoms is proving effective in the battle to safeguard the UK's sexual
health. Family planning services argue young people will always
experiment sexually and it is better to equip them with advice and the
protection of condoms.
But some campaigners argue condoms encourage young people to take
chances.
Teenagers' access to condoms has probably never been greater — and yet
government figures continue to show record figures of infections in the
population as a whole.
Clinics struggling
Overall, 708,083 people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were
diagnosed with an STI in 2003. Sexual health clinics warn they are
struggling to cope — and young people may be those at most risk. A
British Medical Association report found six out of ten 16- to
24-year-olds admit to not using condoms and rates of certain sexually
transmitted diseases are soaring in this age group. Family planning
organisations believe a policy combining sex education with condom use
is the best way forward.
How the C-Card works
Young person registers at a designated point — usually somewhere
like a youth centre Anonymity is preserved but each teenager is
seen by a trained adviser Advice is given on sexual
relationships and safer sex The adviser shows the correct way to
put on a condom The C-card is issued, giving access to free
condoms, if the young person wants it Child protection issues
may be picked up during the discussion
One such initiative is the C-card condom scheme —
whereby young people are given sexual health advice and a 'credit card'
entitling them to free condoms. The C-card programme operates from
places like youth centres, which are convenient for young people and
less daunting than a family planning or sexual health clinic.
Middlesbrough, County Durham, Lincolnshire and parts of Scotland and
Wales are among 50-odd areas to operate the scheme, with Calderdale in
West Yorkshire about to join too. There is no lower age limit on who can
use the service — but Calderdale Primary Care Trust said they expected
the majority to be about 16. Melissa Dear, a spokeswoman for the Family
Planning Association (FPA), said they backed the C-card as a way for
young people to get condoms with advice.
Vending machine
She said: “They can go to a vending machine to get them whenever they
want — so to provide them in a location convenient to them, where they
can access advice from a health professional, can only be beneficial.”
But Norman Wells, director of research group Family and Youth Concern,
believes government efforts to cut teenage pregnancy have made matters
worse. He said: “Sex education and the availability of contraception to
young people have failed to reduce the teenage conception rate.
“But what we have seen is a massive increase in the incidence of
sexually transmitted infections.”
He said the emphasis on condoms lulled young people “into a false sense
of security” — without necessarily warning them of the risks of inexpert
use.
“Condoms are not the infallible answer to pregnancy and STIs,” he said.
His organisation would like sex education to place more value on
restraint, abstinence and marriage.
The Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, which
is opposed to the use of contraception, also recommends abstinence
outside marriage. It states: “Sexually transmitted diseases give a
further reason why casual sex is irresponsible and contrary to human
dignity.” Hugh Henry, education officer for the Church's Linacre Centre
for Healthcare Ethics, said the government must start backing
“abstinence-only sex education programmes”. He said: “The current
approach to preventing teenage pregnancy and STDs is not working. “In
parts of the country where aggressive, contraception-focused sex
education has been tried, we've seen high rates of teenage pregnancy and
STDs.
'Head in the sand'
“There is evidence that promoting sexual self-respect may be more
effective than assuming people 'must' have sex and can only make it
'safer'.”
But Marie Stopes International said a condom and sex advice giveaway run
through teenage magazine Sugar had shown how much young people needed a
comprehensive sex education.
“We had 20,000 donated condoms and they went very, very quickly,” said
spokesman Tony Kerridge. “We had teenagers emailing us to say how great
it was that we were trying to promote this because it was the kind of
information they desperately needed and couldn't find elsewhere.” The
campaign provoked only a handful of complaints from parents, he said,
and helped inform thousands of young people on proper condom use. “We
can moralise about the rights and wrongs of young people having sex but
the reality is that they are — and you either stick your head in the
sand or you try to do something about it.”
Laura Smith-Spark
14 October 2004
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3742322.stm
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