We have been working across the PaSH Partnership and the Men's Room with our communities to develop a toolkit for engagement in rapid sexual health campaigns such as the recent Mpox outbreak.

We know that sometimes people who want to access trusted information during a community outbreak around sexual health or accessing support with this can be challenging. In February 2023 we held a workshop with PaSH communities and the Men’s Room to inform a toolkit to use in future. The workshop developed key principles we will use in our future work – and inform the toolkit. These are the first outcomes.

1. The Communities like to see a joined up and coordinated approach between organisations they interact with. What was clear is that many people had accessed services or information from more than one partner organisation, and it is a challenge when messaging is diluted or contradicted between organisations. This leads to a breakdown in trust.
2. Tackling Disinformation – People want to be communicated with across many channels in person and online including social media – and even advertising, Make it clear where you can get trusted information when getting messaging out.
3. Access – There was a lot of demand for walk-in or other out of hours sexual health advice and services. It can be very hard to make/keep appointments. There are of course challenges around this (especially funding) but could there be more targeted access to things like testing and vaccinations where people feel comfortable engaging?
4. Stories - While recognising people have an important right to confidentiality and privacy – hearing about real experiences of people increases confidence and also breaks down stigma. Make sure there is support for people who share as they own their stories and experiences.
5. Education – We shouldn’t be just waiting for next outbreak of something such as Mpox – there should always be campaigns about good sexual health in our communities and reaching into schools and other education settings to break down stigma and make it easier to engage in the future.

You can see more information on Mpox and vaccinations here