April 2nd –
- Today, I was able to stay on campus instead of commuting to the Clintonville location of Equitas Health. As part of National Public Health Week (an entire week dedicated to my beloved major and field), the hotline did outreach! From morning to mid-afternoon, we had our own table; different Equitas Health departments each had their own tables. Our table in particular had an easy guessing game. We had two containers filled with condoms; people had to guess how many condoms were in the container and they could choose to guess one or both. We provided hints for each container. The larger box had 750 and the smaller one had 300. Only a few people had close-enough answers! We handed out prizes to those who came close to the actual amounts.
- There were hundreds of students who passed by us; we were stationed not too far from Thompson. Some people did avoid us but that was fine. We provided condoms and other free items to people. I appreciated the students and community members who participated in the different activities we offered!
I continue to put myself outside of my comfort zone and interact with people in person. It is a skill I am continuously improving. I enjoyed helping out for NPHW 2018 at OSU!
Public health is everywhere!
April 9th –
- Snapengage, Adam4Adam, and Canva – this is the trifecta that I open up on my laptop when I get seated at the office.
- I made several Canva posts for upcoming holidays. One that was actually used was for Equal Pay Day.
Equal work deserves equal pay, but sadly this is not the case, especially not in America! This post aims to raise awareness at wage gaps not just for women, but for certain subgroups.
- With the warmer weather approaching, I wanted to ensure that people knew how to properly store condoms!
Proper storage of condoms is key! Otherwise, condoms will be wasted.
April 16th –
- Today was a busy day for Snapengage. I had chats to answer from people from China, New York, London, Greece, Ireland, and India, in addition to just America! It is interesting to encounter visitors to the hotline from around the world. Even though we are based in Ohio, we serve anyone who comes across our site and want to know more about sexual health.
- I posted on social media about Orchid Day and how I related it to vaginal health and pH.
Vaginas are not supposed to smell like flowers; it’s not natural. This idea can be harmful to people with vaginas because it is an unrealistic expectation.
- I did the usual protocol of answering online messages.
- I worked on future Canva posts, and this is one of my favorite parts of working at the hotline.
An astounding 1 billion people worldwide (that’s about 1 in 7 people) get involved in some capacity for Earth Day. We only have one home, so we all should take better care of it.
Showers should be around five minutes or less. The average length of showers is eight minutes, which is approximately the length of two songs. I enjoyed finding out what can be sustainable as people engage in pleasure.
April 23rd –
- In the morning, I answered several messages and continued to work on Canva posts!
- I can even schedule posts ahead of time on Facebook, which is a handy feature for anyone with a page.
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Sexting can be safe, but people must take precautions and think smart!
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This post was made for Sexual Assault Awareness Prevention Month. I wanted people to remember these resources in case sexual assault occurs, to them or someone else they know. It is actually a common issue and must be addressed.
April 30th –
- I expected this to be my last day at the hotline for a while, but found out that I can return for just a few hours in May to continue to help out!
- Besides online outreach, I again worked on Canva.
- On this day, I wanted to mention testicular health. This is an aspect of men’s health and although it can be uncomfortable to talk about (how does one have a conversation about testicles?), it is necessary! All ages of men should get involved and take care of themselves down there. Experts suggest doing a self exam after a shower or bath because that is when the testes are relaxed!
This is another favorite post of mine! I love bubble tea and I love educating others.
- I ended my shift by looking up future holidays for May and brainstorming what I could possibly do to promote sexual health even more.
- This month has been eventful and really fruitful for me in terms of what I produced and contributed to the hotline! Volunteering has provided me with insight into what I can do in the future for my public health career.
