Pregnancy test vending machines an 'astounding success' in fight against FASD

Wenda Bradley admits that she wasn't sure how people inYukonwould respond when her organization, the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Society Yukon (FASSY), installed pregnancy test dispensers in some publicwashrooms, last year.

"We were a little concernedbecause it's a new idea and it's not common," she said.

Turns out, she had no reason to worry. People in Whitehorsehave been putting them to good use.

"We are seeing about 13 tests being bought a month, which is great ... I think it's the availability of it it's handy, it's thereand it's discreet."

Bradley says another dispenserin Dawson Cityhas also been well-used,with about 100 tests sold since last year.

The tools to make smart choices

The dispensers were installedas part of a two-year study,led by the University of Alaska Anchorage, on reducing rates of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).

The idea is that adiscreetvending machine mighthelp women discover earlier whenthey are pregnantand, therefore, makeinformedchoices about drinkingor seeking support.

One dispenser in Whitehorse was installed at Yukon College, the other at the Dirty Northern Pub. The pregnancy tests cost $2 from the machines, compared to $17 to $30 from a drugstore. The Dawson machine sells them for $4.

Part of the research involves trying to determine whether the dispensers are more effective "messaging"than simple posters.

"If we don't give women or people the tools, then how can we expect them to follow what we're advising?" Bradley asked.

FASSY looking to install more

Now that it hasnumbers proving thedispensers areused, FASSY is hoping to install more around Yukon.

FASDis "a public health concern, it's a worldwide concern," Bradleysaid. "If we're preventing that many people from having FASD, it's an astounding success for us."

The organization is looking for more partners to help fund the program, or agree to havea dispenser installed at their bar, restaurant, or other public facility.

But don't expect to see them just anywhere, Bradley says.

"We're not yetI don't think in our societyor our community, willing to put them up just anywhere,but they have to be in a place that women can have discreetaccess to them."