Condom Availability Programs (CAPs)

Steps for assessing support for CAPs include:

• Reviewing state and local policies on CAPs and condom distribution in schools.
• Getting administrative support, and seeking support from others in the school and community (including parents and caregivers).
• Finding out if there is student interest in the program, and supporting students who will help start or promote a CAP.
• Working with the school board to create written policies and procedures for a CAP.

It is important to identify the appropriate people to take on both the setup and the day-to-day implementation of a CAP.

You might do this by working with:

• An existing advisory or decision-making group to help set up a CAP.
• A school-level designee and support staff—to handle the logistics of condom distribution.

Steps for setting up management and oversight include:

• Identifying a committee to manage the program.
• Selecting a person to order and store condoms and informational material.
• Evaluating CAP strategies and policies annually—to help improve the programs.

A successful CAP requires team effort.

CAPs can benefit from early, consistent input from community health care providers, students, and parents and caregivers by:

• Setting up or strengthening partnerships with the local health department or community health service providers. Such people can offer support, assess the community burden of STIs/HIV, and identify resources.
• Thinking about how to involve parents/caregivers to support CAPs. Schools can recruit allies by educating parents and stakeholders about the importance of CAPs and addressing any fears or concerns. School administrators should consider ways to best inform students' parents and caregivers about the benefits of CAPs.
• Asking for student input about fostering student awareness and use of CAPs, such as distribution locations and marketing.

Successful CAPs are part of the school's broader sexual health education. Help ensure success by:

• Providing educational information—such as a brochure or a counseling message—with the condoms.
• Starting the program along with other school-based sexual health promotion activities, such as school screening events or health fairs.
• Training interested students to share information through a peer-education program.
• Providing skills-based sexual health education. Information might include the importance of using condoms correctly every time teens have sex, and where to obtain condoms.

All programs should have at least one confidential location for students to obtain condoms.

Steps to make condoms available include:

• Asking students where they would feel comfortable getting condoms.
• Considering multiple locations, such as the nurse's office and health resource room.
• Creating training for condom distributers.
• Providing condoms to students free of charge.
• Finding out what consent procedure fits the needs of parents/caregivers, students, and local policy requirements.
• Setting up procedures for parent notification and consent, if needed.
• Distributing parent/caregiver notification information, if needed.

Suggested steps for promoting CAPS include:

• Providing professional development and training for designated school staff. Topics include: the benefits of using condoms, where students can obtain them, and important school policies and procedures. Another key topic to cover: how to maintain student confidentiality.
• Creating promotional materials, such as posters and flyers.
• Sharing information about the program in student newspapers and/or morning announcements.
• Relying on student-led marketing during observance days or other significant dates. Possibilities are National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, National STD Awareness Month, and Valentine's Day, which is also National Condom Awareness Day.