Kent C Card iPhone app

Teenagers to access free condoms and sexual health advice with new app

Health chiefs have developed an iPhone app to help reduce unplanned teenage pregnancy and improve the sexual health of the county’s youngsters.

The Kent C Card app helps youngsters access free condoms, emergency contraception and information about getting treated for sexually transmitted infections.

All teenagers aged 19 and under are able to register with the scheme, which follows on from the C Card initiative, a community based contraceptive scheme set up in 2007 to help young people access free condoms and advice.

Head of sexual health at Kent Community Health NHS Trust Ruth Herron said the C Card scheme had been successful, with more than 45,850 teenagers registering since 2007 and more than 5,000 hits to the website every month.

“It is a major part of the drive to improve sexual health and reduce unplanned teenage pregnancy in the county,” she said.

“However, we recognise the need to be able to give teenagers the information they require on the move as well.

“This app not only gives people information about the C Card, it can also point them immediately in the direction of the nearest outlet to get free condoms or advice about their sexual health.”

The app uses active maps to direct teenagers to the where they can get contraception and information.

In the past, some of the county’s districts have seen high teenage pregnancy rates, but health bosses say there is an overall downward trend across Kent.

The latest countywide figures show that in 2009 there were 968 conceptions in women aged under 18 and 883 in 2010.

An NHS spokeswoman for Kent and Medway said teenage pregnancy increases the likelihood of living in poverty and leads to poor long-term outcomes for young parents and their children.

“Babies of teenage mothers are more likely to be born prematurely or at a low birth-weight; 60 per cent more likely to die in the first year of life than babies of mothers aged 20-39; and twice as likely to be admitted to hospital as a result of an accident or gastro-enteritis,” she said.

“Teenage mothers are three times more likely to get post-natal depression than older mothers; face a higher risk of poor mental health for three years after the birth; and three times more likely to smoke during pregnancy than mothers over 35.”

She added that young mothers are one third less likely to breastfeed and many would struggle to complete their education, therefore finding it difficult to gain employment.

The new iPhone app has been developed by Canterbury-based company Tinderhouse, which is located at the University of Kent Innovation Centre.

Managing director Nick Tatt said the app was a great example of how mobile technology can be used to give access to information when and where it is needed.

“Apps like the Kent C Card demonstrate how mobile phones provide direct access to relevant information, in this case, the nearest C Card pick up point in Kent,” he said.

Anyone who wants to register with the scheme must attend an appointment with a trained advisor.

For more information about the C Card go to www.foryoungpeople.co.uk.