The Primary Care midwives of the Lanzarote Health Area, attached to the Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands, have trained more than 2,200 students from the island's educational centers in sexual and affective education. The programs and activities developed by these health professionals address topics such as contraception, risk factors and behaviors, body changes related to puberty, promotion of hygiene and prevention of sexually transmitted infections with students from different courses.
In total, more than 2,200 students from schools and institutes in Lanzarote have participated in these workshops and training activities within six projects related to sexual and affective education organized by the Primary Care midwives, adapted to the different educational cycles of Primary, Secondary and Baccalaureate.
Sexual and affective health projects in educational centers
Thus, "Don't give me stories, myths and sexuality" has reached 690 first-year ESO students. This activity addresses the most common myths and false beliefs about sexual and reproductive health at these ages and tries to prevent them from generating prejudices and misconceptions about it.
Another of the initiatives that has been developed during the course is "The box of doubts" directed at third-year ESO students. In it, 677 students have participated in the 34 sessions that have been held in different Lanzarote institutes. This project aims to help resolve doubts raised by students related to sexual, affective and reproductive health. The girls and boys formulate their questions or doubts on a form that they deposit in the box, thus ensuring that they are always anonymous, which facilitates expression and communication between the students and the health professional.
On the other hand, the activity "Safe sex, healthy sex", aimed at 1st year Baccalaureate students, has carried out a total of 23 interventions in the institutes of Lanzarote and a total of 439 students have participated in it. During the sessions, the midwives analyze the methods available for a healthy sexual life, focused on the prevention of unwanted pregnancy and the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. The aim is for students to know the various contraceptive methods, the indications and contraindications of each of them or the risks they generate, as well as their safety and to distinguish those that only prevent pregnancies from those that also prevent sexually transmitted diseases. This activity also delves into the shared responsibility of using male or female condoms.
Finally, this year the midwives have started the workshop "To be born, to die, to love, to care" which explains to boys and girls between eight and nine years of age how a baby develops and is cared for inside the uterus, the care of the pregnant mother, childbirth and newborn care, also addressing the issue of death as part of life. This workshop, conceived by Manuel Contreras, midwife at the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital in Santander, has been developed for the first time in the classrooms and has reached 118 boys and girls. Pregnant women participate in the sessions who voluntarily help the midwives to explain the gestation process and the phases of pregnancy until childbirth.
On the other hand, the activity "The World of Aridane", aimed at 6th grade students, addresses the physical, emotional and social changes associated with the puberty process. These actions have been developed in 15 classrooms and 290 students have participated in them.
All these initiatives are part of the health promotion activities carried out by Primary Care professionals in collaboration with those responsible for health education in each of the educational centers.
Youth Consultation in the health centers of Valterra, Tierroy and Playa Blanca
The Primary Care midwives also lead the Youth Consultation, a project designed to promote informed and protected sexuality to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies, as well as to offer advice to young people and adolescents about their rights at the level of sexual and reproductive health.
This consultation attends to people under 25 years of age at the Valterra Health Center on Wednesdays from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., at the Tierroy Health Center on Tuesdays between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. and at the Playa Blanca Health Center on Mondays from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
