Sexual violence support advertisements in sexual health services v1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Advertising sexual violence support in Sexual and Reproductive Health Services (SRHS): improving awareness, relatability and acceptability
IRAS ID
327429
Contact name
Rachel Caswell
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, days
Research summary
Disclosure following sexual violence (SV), for instance to healthcare professionals, and receiving support can prevent future abuse and improve health outcomes for survivors of SV. However, SV is underreported, and survivors can have problems with associated poor physical and mental health. Sexual and reproductive health services (SHRS) offer SV support but there are concerns that many people may be unaware that this is available, and may also feel reluctant to disclose and seek help. One approach to increase engagement with services is by raising awareness through appropriate promotion of services. Advertisements that include information about SV support services, the nature of support available and how to access it have the potential to reduce anxiety around formal disclosure. But, it is unclear if current approaches to advertising are effective in increasing awareness of SV services, are seen as being relevant to survivors and are acceptable to the target audience. Therefore this project seeks to explore the opinions of SV survivors and relevant key stakeholders to gain an in-depth understanding of the type and content of advertisements that should be utilised within a SRHS setting.
REC name
West Midlands - Coventry & Warwickshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/WM/0003
Date of REC Opinion
19 Mar 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion