Communication in infectious disease surveillance: PART 2: Health communication case study
Files
Document Type
Book Chapter
Description
Chapter 41.2 from Infectious Disease Surveillance Second Edition, edited by Nkuchia M. M'ikanatha, Ruth Lynfield, Chris A. Van Beneden, and Henriette de Valk. A sharp rise in syphilis in 2001 among gay and bisexual men in San Francisco prompted health officials to introduce a novel social marketing campaign titled “Healthy Penis.” The primary goals of the campaign were to raise awareness of the syphilis outbreak, enhance knowledge about syphilis, and to increase the frequency of syphilis testing. Evaluations of the campaign revealed that >80% of respondents were aware of the campaign and men who were aware of the campaign had greater knowledge of syphilis and were more likely to be tested. We believe that because the campaign was developed by the health department in collaboration with the gay community and included relevant community values, it successfully reached the target population and resulted in increased syphilis knowledge, testing, and, subsequently, a reduction in syphilis incidence in 2005. After cessation of the campaign, a resurgence in syphilis infections was observed among gay and bisexual men. In 2008, the Healthy Penis campaign was relaunched; evaluations of its impact are underway.
ISBN
978-0470654675
Publication Date
2013
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
City
Chichester, West Sussex
Recommended Citation
Klausner, Jeffrey D., and Katherine Ahrens. "Health Communication and Surveillance Case Study: A Healthy Response to Increases in Syphilis—The San Francisco Healthy Penis Campaign." Infectious Disease Surveillance, edited by Nkuchia M'ikanatha, et al., Wiley-Blackwell, 2013, pp. 618-622.
Comments
This edition first published 2013 © 2007, 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd About this book: This fully updated edition of Infectious Disease Surveillance is for frontline public health practitioners, epidemiologists, and clinical microbiologists who are engaged in communicable disease control. It is also a foundational text for trainees in public health, applied epidemiology, postgraduate medicine and nursing programs. The second edition portrays both the conceptual framework and practical aspects of infectious disease surveillance. It is a comprehensive resource designed to improve the tracking of infectious diseases and to serve as a starting point in the development of new surveillance systems. Infectious Disease Surveillance includes over 45 chapters from over 100 contributors, and topics organized into six sections based on major themes.