Comfort with Condoms

Professional and personal biases may interfere with your ability to promote condoms to clients. It is important to identify and address these biases in order to effectively discuss, demonstrate, and promote condom use with clients. It is also important to develop comfort with handling and discussing condoms.

During a staff meeting, try discussing some of the questions below:

• What are some of the professional biases that family planning providers may have against condoms?
• What are some of the personal biases that people, including health care providers, may have against condoms?
• How can providers help clients feel more comfortable using condoms?

You can also try this exercise with your staff:

Take a small box, and fill it with unrolled condoms. Don’t tell staff members what is in the box. Tell them to close their eyes and to take turns putting their hands in the box. As they feel inside the box, ask them to use adjectives to describe what they feel. Some people may have positive responses, such as “soft” and “silky,” or negative responses, such as “slimy” (if the condoms are lubricated). This exercise can be a good starting point for discussing condom attributes.