Sexual and reproductive health: the impact of technological and communicational advances on the male role

Abstract

In Portugal, the Health Ministry’s family planning programmes have traditionally focused on women. However, the involvement of men in family planning is crucial to the promotion of equal opportunities in health. Recent advances in technology and the means of communication that support Sexual and Reproductive Health seemed to mark the beginning of a new era in family planning in which men and women could be equal partners in the decision making processes, but these hopes have not been realised. In this chapter, we present semi-structured interviews conducted with 66 men from the Northwest of Portugal between May and June 2010. The results show that 90% of the respondents consider their involvement in the vigilance of Sexual and Reproductive Health important. However, 83.3% have not, to date, participated in any kind of consultation for family planning. The results identify a need to create new strategies for the promotion of Sexual and Reproductive Health among men, employing for example social marketing strategies, in which new technologies and certain means of communication could have an important role.