Petrelis Files

Study: Syphilis Ads Had no Impact on
Gay Health in Florida

This is a very interesting abstract, one that should be debated in San Francisco, as the issue of all the social marketing crap thrown at gay men will be placed back on the local community's agenda.

February 2008, Vol 98, No. 2 | American Journal of Public Health 337-343

Short-Term Impact Evaluation of a Social Marketing Campaign to Prevent Syphilis Among Men Who Have Sex With Men

William W. Darrow, PhD and Susan Biersteker, Drs

William W. Darrow is with the Department of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at the Robert R. Stempel School of Public Health, Florida International University, Biscayne Bay Campus, North Miami. Susan Biersteker is with Behavioral Research and Evaluation Consultants, LLC, Miami Beach, Florida.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to William W. Darrow, Florida International University, 3000 NE 151st St, TR–7, North Miami, FL 33181–3600 (e-mail darroww@).

Objectives. We carried out an independent short-term impact evaluation of a social marketing campaign designed to reduce syphilis infections among men who have sex with men in south Florida in 2004.

Methods. Venue-based surveys were conducted shortly after the campaign began and 6 months later to assess changes in exposure to campaign materials, awareness, knowledge about syphilis, perceptions of risk, sexual behavior, clinic visits, and testing and treatment for syphilis among participants.

Results. Exposure to social marketing campaign materials increased from 18.0% at baseline to 36.5% at follow-up (P< .001). Awareness of syphilis and perceptions of risk increased among Broward County residents but not among Miami–Dade County residents. Risky sexual practices and patterns of recreational drug use did not change. No significant increases in knowledge, clinic visits, or testing or treatment for syphilis among participants were detected over the 6-month study period.

Conclusions. None of the campaign objectives were fully met. The interventions were insufficient to produce a significant impact among men who have sex with men in south Florida.