HSC to launch new youth campaign
Wednesday December 7, 2011
Youth education campaign: 'Don’t Let The Sun Get Under Your Skin'
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The Health Sponsorship Council (HSC) is finalising plans for a new youth sun protection campaign to be launched in January 2012. According to HSC, teenagers are a challenging age group to target with most social marketing messages, and SunSmart messages are no exception. The long-lasting and life-threatening effects of too much sun exposure usually come later in life, so most teenagers don’t see preventing sun damage as relevant to their lives now. Also, many teenagers still see having a “good tan” as attractive and desirable. HSC’s new campaign is based on work undertaken by the Centre for Health Initiatives (CHI), University of Wollongong, Australia. The CHI focuses on health research across a number of areas, with cancer prevention being just one. The CHI’s adolescent education programme came about because, despite 25 years of mass media and programmes aimed at sun protective behaviours in Australia, fewer and fewer Australian adolescents were being sun smart. |
In July 2011, the HSC consumer tested this campaign ('Don’t Let The Sun Get Under Your Skin'), with teenagers, along with three other campaigns, and it was deemed by this target group the most effective campaign to use in New Zealand.
The campaign will be launched in January 2012. Besides national promotion of the campaign, the sun safety team will be running a UV camera/sunscreen booth at three events across the country.
For further information see: http://sunsmart.org.nz/media/adolescent-education-programme
The Centre for Health Initiatives: http://www.uow.edu.au/health/chi/index.html
See also:
U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (DRAFT) for evidence of effectiveness of appearance-focused behavioural interventions
http://www.melanoma.org.nz/MelNet/News/What%27s-Happening/2011/November/15/Counselling-youth-on-prevention-in-primary-care-setting/
