Enhancing client engagement and alleviating period product insecurity: A cross-sectional study of community-based period supply banks' distribution of free period products through intermediary partner agencies in the United States
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Community organizations distributing period products see increased client engagement and service utilization. However, product shortages mean many clients are turned away, highlighting the need for better access to menstrual hygiene supplies.
Area Of Science
- Public Health
- Social Sciences
- Community Health
Background
- Menstrual hygiene management is crucial for daily functioning, yet period product insecurity affects many.
- Community-based period supply banks address this gap by providing essential menstrual products to those in need.
- Lack of public policy exacerbates challenges for economically disadvantaged menstruating individuals.
Purpose Of The Study
- To evaluate organizational benefits for community agencies distributing period products.
- To assess the impact of period product distribution on client engagement and agency relationships.
- To identify challenges faced by period supply banks and their partners.
Main Methods
- A cross-sectional, formative evaluation study.
- Anonymous web-based surveys administered to staff at partner agencies at two time points.
- Informed consent obtained from all participants prior to survey completion.
Main Results
- Agencies reported increased client conversations about needs, longer relationships, and better appointment adherence after distributing period products.
- Clients were more likely to seek other services, participate in programs, and communicate with agencies.
- A significant barrier identified was product shortages, with 41% of agencies unable to serve all clients.
Conclusions
- Period supply banks and partner agencies improve access to menstrual products and related support, fostering client engagement.
- Universal access to menstrual hygiene supplies requires policy changes and increased funding.
- Ensuring access to period products is vital for individual well-being and societal participation.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Related Concept Videos
In cross-sectional research, a researcher compares multiple segments of the population at the same time. If they were interested in people's dietary habits, the researcher might directly compare different groups of people by age. Instead of following a group of people for 20 years to see how their dietary habits changed from decade to decade, the researcher would study a group of 20-year-old individuals and compare them to a group of 30-year-old individuals and a group of 40-year-old...
Sometimes we want to see how people change over time, as in studies of human development and lifespan. When we test the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time, we are conducting longitudinal research. Longitudinal research is a research design in which data-gathering is administered repeatedly over an extended period of time. For example, we may survey a group of individuals about their dietary habits at age 20, retest them a decade later at age 30, and then again...
Observational studies are a type of analytical study where researchers observe events without any interventions. In other words, the researcher does not influence the response variable or the experiment's outcome.
There are three types of observational studies – Prospective, retrospective, and cross-sectional.
Prospective Study
Prospective studies, also known as longitudinal or cohort studies, are carried out by collecting future data from groups sharing similar characteristics. One...
Sampling is a technique to select a portion (or subset) of the larger population and study that portion (the sample) to gain information about the population. Data are the result of sampling from a population. The sampling method ensures that samples are drawn without bias and accurately represent the population.
Convenience sampling is a non-random method of sample selection; this method selects individuals that are easily accessible and may result in biased data. For example, a marketing...
The most basic experimental design involves two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The two groups are designed to be the same except for one difference— experimental manipulation. The experimental group gets the experimental manipulation—that is, the treatment or variable being tested—and the control group does not. Since experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, we can be sure that any differences between...