Recorded presentation

Nicole Monastersky, MPH, Pharmacy Access Partnership, 614 Grand, Suite 324, Oakland, CA 94610, 510-272-0150, nmonastersky@phi.org, Diana Greene Foster, PhD, Reproductive Health Research & Policy, University of California, San Francisco, 2356 Sutter Street, Suite 200, UCSF Box 1744, San Francisco, CA 94143, and Frances Chung, Pharmacy Access Partnership, Public Health Institute, 614 Grand Avenue, Suite 324, Oakland, CA 94610.

Since 2001, over 750 pharmacies in California have provided emergency contraception directly to consumers. The Pharmacy Access Partnership established a dedicated consumer website and toll free hotline to further promote pharmacy access to EC. Over the last two years there have been more than 43,000 searches on the website and over 25,000 telephone inquiries.

An analysis of pharmacy, website, hotline and census data reveals growth patterns of participating pharmacies and trends in consumer utilization of the hotline and website, particularly when comparing Hispanic and non-Hispanic communities. The website serves a fairly different population than the hotline: surprisingly, people in smaller towns tend to use the website more than those in larger cities. A relationship between the percentage of the population that is Hispanic and the use of the website versus hotline was also revealed. Growth in the number of participating pharmacies in predominantly Hispanic areas paralleled the rapid growth of overall pharmacies enrolled in the program. Understanding these and other key findings will help identify which communication vehicles best meet the needs of different target audiences when providing public health information.

Learning Objectives: At the session’s conclusion, the participant will be able to

• Understand the different population trends of website and hotline users.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of hotlines versus websites in providing public health information to women, Hispanic consumers and residents of small towns.
• Describe the growth in consumer interest around EC pharmacy referrals.

Keywords: Pharmacies, Patient Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: I am an employee of the Pharmacy Access Partnership, a center of the Public Health Institute

Recorded presentation