Purpose University students who have low knowledge, attitudes and intentions regarding the prevention of unintended pregnancies may experience higher rates of unintended pregnancies. An educational program was developed based on the self-efficacy theory and peer-led education to improve unintended pregnancy problems among university students. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of an educational program on knowledge, attitudes and intentions regarding the use of condoms and emergency contraceptive pills among Thai university students. Design/methodology/approach The effectiveness of the educational program was tested by a quasi-experimental study with a pre- and post-test design. The study was conducted between September and October 2017. Multistage sampling was used to recruit 73 Thai female university students, including 36 students in the intervention group and 37 students in the comparison group. The intervention group received an eight-week educational program, while the comparison group did not. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess the improvement of knowledge, attitudes and intention regarding condom and emergency contraceptive pill use. Descriptive statistics, paired samples t-test, Wilcoxon test and Mann–Whitney tests were used for data analysis. Findings Most participants in both groups had sexual intercourse. After the end of the program, the before-after mean score of the intervention group’s knowledge (8.0, 11.0), attitudes (29.4, 32.4) and intention (17.4, 20.4) were significantly increased (p-value<0.001). Post-intervention, there were statistically significant differences in knowledge scores (p-value<0.001) and intention scores (p-value=0.04) between the intervention group and the comparison group. Originality/value This educational program increases knowledge and intention but does not influence attitudes toward using condoms and emergency contraceptive pills.

PurposeThe aim of this study was to determine whether there is an associated effect between sociodemographic characteristics and sexual risk behaviors with health literacy in preventing unintended pregnancy among university students in Chon Buri province, Thailand.Participants and methodsA cross-sectional study design was used. The data were collected between February and May, 2017. A self-administered questionnaire was developed by the Ministry of Public Health and supported by the evolving concept of health literacy of Nutbeam. This questionnaire was then applied to collect data from 418 university students. Descriptive statistical and binary logistic regression methods were used for data analysis in this study.ResultsHalf the students exhibited inappropriate behaviors to prevent unintended pregnancies. However, half the respondents had been educated to prevent unintended pregnancies. Nearly one-third of the students had experienced sexual intercourse. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze an association between the behavior for unintended-pregnancy prevention with sociodemographic characteristics and the health literacy of university students. The factors assessed were current residence type (the adjusted odds ratio [aOR]=1.897, 95% CI=1.123–3.205), previous sexual intercourse (aOR=3.263, 95% CI=1.735–6.139), cognitive health to prevent unintended pregnancy (aOR=1.095, 95% CI=1.019–1.176), decision skills in choosing appropriate practices to prevent unintended pregnancy (aOR=1.289, 95% CI=1.182–1.405), and self-management to prevent unintended pregnancy (aOR=1.113, 95% CI=1.005–1.232).ConclusionThis study indicated that university students who had experienced sexual intercourse and had low health literacy were more likely to exhibit inappropriate behaviors concerning the lack of prevention of unintended pregnancies. The results will provide health professionals with information to develop more effective prevention and intervention programs.

Background: This quasi-experimental study aimed to determine the effects of the ‘Our Love, Our Control’ online program on sexual health literacy and behaviors during the COVID-19 situation in Thailand from February 2020 to September 2021. Methods: Multistage sampling resulted in 37 and 34 participants in the experimental and control groups, respectively. Data were collected by a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, Fisher’s exact test/Chi-square test, and independent t-test/Mann-Whitney test were used to determine differences in sociodemographic variables between the experimental and control groups. Repeated measures of ANCOVA were used to compare the mean and 95% confidence intervals of the adjusted variables. Results: From the results, adolescents who had sexual intercourse experience had statistically significant differences at the eighth week of score for behaviors (23.92; 95% CI: 16.56; 31.29), and at the eighth and at the twentieth week of score for sexual health literacy (43.55; 95% CI: 28.10; 59.00; and 19.35; 95% CI: 0.23; 38.48, respectively). However, adolescents who had no sexual intercourse experience had statistically significant differences only at the eighth week of score for sexual health literacy. (11.20; 95% CI: 3.79; 18.61). Conclusions: These findings present a useful practical program to prevent unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, especially in sexually active adolescents.

Background: This study explored the association between sexual health literacy (SHL) and preventive behaviors of pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among middle-school students during the COVID-19 outbreak to aid in the development of an informative program. Methods: Mixed-method study with stratified two-stage cluster sampling was used to obtain 730 students from 20 middle schools in a rural province of Thailand. Online self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from February 2020 to February 2021. Two brainstorming sessions were conducted with a purposeful sample of 25 stakeholders. Multiple linear regressions were used to assess the relationships. Results: The associated significant factors with the preventive behaviors were sex (b=2.06, 95% CI: 1.07, 3.05), nightlife (b=-2.33, 95% CI: -3.99, -0.67), drinking alcoholic beverages (b=2.24, 95% CI: -3.24, -1.23), sexual intercourse experience (b=-2.64, 95% CI: -4.56, -0.72), and SHL (b=0.12, 95% CI: 0.08, 0.16). The stakeholders recommended an edutainment online program via Facebook. Conclusion: This study investigated factors associated with SHL and preventive behaviors among middle school students. The most effective variable in this model was SHL. Therefore, a trial of an online program emphasizing SHL improvement should be examined for effectiveness among these students and seems appropriate, considering their rural area context and middle-school status.

Purpose This study aimed to identify the factors associated with depression among workers in industrial factories in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) of Thailand. Additionally, a guidebook was created to evaluate the suitability and appropriateness of the health literacy of the workers to prevent depression. Methods This study applied a mixed method from May 2019 to May 2020. Two-stage sampling was used to recruit samples. A total of 416 workers were surveyed using a self-administered questionnaire. Moreover, 20 stakeholders enrolled in two focus group discussions (FGDs) using a semi-structured interview questionnaire to explore situations and develop a guidebook. Descriptive statistical, multivariable logistic regression, and content analysis were applied to analyze the data. Both quantitative and qualitative data were used in the development of the guidebook, which were further tested and evaluated by interviewing the 20 stakeholders. Results Depression was found in 17.1% of the workers. Job position (adjusted odds ratio [OR adj ] = 7.14), hours of online media use (OR adj = 1.87), moody/anxious (OR adj = 5.35), avoiding people (OR adj = 9.12), and self-behavior modification to prevent depression (OR adj = 2.41) were associated with significant depression. The FGDs revealed that stakeholders had blurred perceptions of stress and depression. The sample of industrial factory workers was subjected to workload time constraints but had low level of screening for depression. Online media was used only for working in industries. The guidebook was very interesting and useful for stakeholders and contained definitions and symptoms of depression, self-screening and self-care strategies, consultation and hotline contacts, and health literacy improvement guidelines for factory and health personnel to prevent depression. Conclusion This study confirmed that online media and health literacy were imperative factors to address depression among workers in industrial factories. The guidebook was developed based on health literacy and help prevent depression among workers in industrial settings.