Period Poverty: A Story from Region 6

Show Notes

Transcript

00:00:03:13 - 00:00:30:02
Yamila El-Khayat
I'm librarian Yamila El-Khayat, and this is NNLM Discovery, a podcast from the network of the National Library of Medicine. This podcast series explores how the NNLM is engaging with communities to provide access to trusted information for the purpose of improving the public's health. Today's episode is Period Poverty, a story from Region Six. Communications and Finance Coordinator, Miles Dietz-Castel, will be joining us today. Hi, Miles.

00:00:30:13 - 00:00:31:04
Miles Dietz-Castel
Hi Yamila.

00:00:31:23 - 00:00:37:19
Yamila El-Khayat
So, Miles, period poverty. Is this story about what I think it's about?

00:00:38:13 - 00:00:59:07
Miles Dietz-Castel
It's exactly what you're thinking it is. Today, we're going to break the stigma while redefining what a library is. We're talking about the natural body function that half of the world's population will experience at some point in their life. Menstruation, otherwise known as periods. And you know what, Yamila? I'm proud to say that I've been officially designated the unique title of Flow Bro from our interviewees today.

00:01:00:21 - 00:01:14:09
Yamila El-Khayat
Flow Bro, Miles. Your casualness on this health topic is completely contagious. I wasn't aware of period poverty in America. So before we jump into your story, tell us a little about Region six.

00:01:14:15 - 00:01:33:11
Miles Dietz-Castel
Yeah, of course. Region six includes almost all the states referred to as the Midwest, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. Most of region six is suburbs, small towns and rural. We're featuring one of our small towns today that's implemented an amazing pilot program called Free Flow.

00:01:34:07 - 00:01:38:07
Yamila El-Khayat
I can see where Flow Bro came from. Tell me more about our story.

00:01:38:17 - 00:01:51:16
Miles Dietz-Castel
So our story today takes place in Richland County, Ohio. Dr. Julie Chaya, the Director of Community Health and Prevention Sciences at Richland Public Health, begins our story with describing where exactly Richland County is located in Ohio.

00:01:52:05 - 00:02:22:02
Dr. Julie Chaya
So, Richland County is located right in between Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, and the main urban center of Richland County is known as Mansfield, and surrounding Mansfield, we have a small suburban ring and then the rest of the county is rural. Even though we are basically in the middle of nowhere Ohio, people around the world know us because of “The Shawshank Redemption” movie being filmed here, as well as the Inkcarceration Festival happening here annually.

00:02:22:13 - 00:02:25:04
Miles Dietz-Castel
Yamila, have you ever seen the movie “The Shawshank Redemption”?

00:02:25:14 - 00:02:27:08
Yamila El-Khayat
Of course. It's a classic.

00:02:27:18 - 00:02:51:16
Miles Dietz-Castel
Then you know exactly where the story is taking place. They still do walking tours of the famous film locations. Mansfield is like stepping back in time. It's a cute, cinematic old town with a lot of charm. But a lot of the community is struggling. There's a significant portion of the population living in poverty, and that means there's many menstruators in the community living in period poverty. Dr. Chaya explains what period poverty is.

00:02:52:07 - 00:03:32:23
Dr. Julie Chaya
So, period poverty is a lack of access to resources as well as education related to menstrual health or periods. So, that can mean not having access to pads or tampons or having education about what periods are all about. I would say I was first aware of period poverty in Richland County throughout COVID-19, the pandemic, where we were finding individuals that were indicating that because of shortages or because of lack of money, they were not able to afford those types of products.

00:03:32:23 - 00:03:58:09
Dr. Julie Chaya
So we knew we had to do something. So to eradicate period poverty, really all you need to do is have either pads or tampons available at little to no cost for folks who may need them during their menstrual cycle. The financial investment for free pads and tampons is very minimal. However, it makes a huge public health impact.

00:03:59:05 - 00:04:16:10
Miles Dietz-Castel
To overcome period poverty. Dr. Chaya partnered with Aunt Flow a pad and tampon dispenser company that started nearby in Columbus, Ohio, by an 18 year old woman who dedicated her life to developing a solution after being in a public space, getting her period and not having access to the supplies that she needed.

00:04:16:17 - 00:04:22:05
Yamila El-Khayat
I think every one of us women have been in a situation like that before. This is amazing work.

00:04:22:14 - 00:04:33:19
Miles Dietz-Castel
You're so right. Tyler Donohue, Social Impact Manager, at Aunt Flow and Sara Djubek, Senior Director of Happiness, that's Aunt Flow’s way of saying Sales Manager, talk about the impacts of period poverty.

00:04:34:08 - 00:04:57:03
Tyler Donohue
I was quite surprised when I realized that here in the United States, period poverty is actually a massive issue. One in four K-through-12 students actually reported not having access to period products or the ability to buy those period products. So yeah, I would say most people in the United States walking down the street don't realize that that is such a pressing issue.

00:04:57:15 - 00:05:14:01
Tyler Donohue
So the impact of period poverty on menstruators is that they do not feel confident to manage their health in a way that is dignified and safe and they feel excluded from society because it's a natural bodily process that should be provided for and even celebrated.

00:05:14:10 - 00:05:38:02
Sara Djubek
What we're finding and what we know as a fact across America is when people do not have access to the products that they need, when they need them, they'll default to other types of products or makeshift solutions, paper towels. They'll make tampons out of toilet tissue, and that's not safe. This isn't going away. Menstruation is not a choice.

00:05:38:16 - 00:06:00:15
Sara Djubek
It's a bodily function. And that's why it's so important to have products available. Just like soap, paper towels, toilet tissue. It should be freely accessible so that people can have equity in the workplace. They can have equity in the school. They should have the same advantage, not based on whether or not they have a uterus.

00:06:01:07 - 00:06:12:00
Miles Dietz-Castel
You know, as someone who doesn't have a uterus, this comment hit me pretty hard because it's something I don't ever think about, but it's completely correct. Why aren't these period products available for free? Like toilet paper.

00:06:12:07 - 00:06:17:00
Yamila El-Khayat
As one that has a uterus? You have no idea how amazing and important it would be.

00:06:17:10 - 00:06:27:10
Miles Dietz-Castel
The other part of period poverty is the lack of education on the topic. We talked to three female students from Mansfield about what they learned regarding menstruation and period poverty in school.

00:06:27:20 - 00:06:32:04
High School Student
Menstruation wasn't something I really learned about in school at all.

00:06:32:04 - 00:06:41:04
High School Student
We did that whole like separate the boys and girls talk about puberty or whatever and it was like you get a period. Yay, and that was it.

00:06:41:04 - 00:06:57:18
High School Student
Usually people are grossed out by the fact, like talking about periods. They think it's gross, but it needs to be normalized because like, we're all just human beings and it's natural. And like men's health is always talked about.

00:06:57:18 - 00:07:07:17
High School Student
And I think having free period products in bathrooms is like a huge step, like towards actually having that conversation and making people more comfortable with it.

00:07:07:17 - 00:07:15:08
High School Student
It is kind of mortifying a little bit when you get your period in public and you don't have anything to like help you.

00:07:15:08 - 00:07:25:12
High School Student
Me personally, I am not able to afford period products because I don't have a job or anything and I know a lot of kids don't and their parents can't afford them either, so.

00:07:25:12 - 00:07:31:11
High School Student
I think they should be available just like toilet paper is like it's a necessity. Like we need them. Like women need them.

00:07:32:08 - 00:07:46:09
Miles Dietz-Castel
So, Dr. Chaya received a private grant to purchase pads and tampons for Richland County. She established a partnership with Aunt Flow to install the dispensers for distributing the products. But now she needed a plan for where to put these units. Yamila, where do you think she installed them?

00:07:47:01 - 00:07:53:09
Yamila El-Khayat
Well, obviously in bathrooms. I'm a librarian, so I think the library would be the perfect place.

00:07:53:14 - 00:08:08:19
Miles Dietz-Castel
That's exactly right. They first installed them at Richland County Public Health Building and are now working on installing them at all the libraries in the entire county. We interviewed Chris May, the Director of Mansfield Public Libraries, about why libraries are the perfect place for these dispensers.

00:08:09:06 - 00:08:32:04
Chris May
Libraries are a great place for these dispensers because libraries are a place that people feel comfortable coming to. It's a non-judgmental place to come to. It's a place where you can find all sorts of resources. So this is just one more resource. Libraries are definitely evolving and we're becoming more community centers. Health has really become an important part of what we do.

00:08:32:20 - 00:08:59:20
Chris May
We give out blood pressure cuffs here, air quality monitors, and other health related items that people can check out. So this program really helped helped expand on that and provide more opportunities for our community. The units are very easy to take care of, easy to use, and I think the educational opportunities that come with it can be very eye opening for people as well.

00:09:00:20 - 00:09:05:19
Miles Dietz-Castel
Here's Dr. Chaya and Chris May talking about the educational training component of the Free Flow program.

00:09:06:20 - 00:09:23:01
Dr. Julie Chaya
So we are providing menstrual health equity training to all of our librarians here in Richland County so that they have the basic knowledge and skills to field any questions that a patron might have in regards to menstrual health.

00:09:23:17 - 00:09:46:17
Chris May
Librarians are a very great resource to provide health information because not everyone can afford to go to their their doctor or have the time to do so. And it can be very time consuming. It can be very expensive. So librarians giving health information is something that we've done for years, but I think it's something that can be expanded upon in the future.

00:09:47:13 - 00:09:52:12
Miles Dietz-Castel
We were able to attend one of Dr. Chaya’s training sessions with librarians. Here's a clip from the session.

00:09:53:06 - 00:10:21:23
Dr. Julie Chaya
How many people in this room have had a period before? So if you have any patrons that are looking for the pads or the tampons in the restrooms, they are more than welcome to take more than one. We want them to be fully protected and safe throughout their entire menstrual cycle of the month. So don't be alarmed if folks are taking a couple of pads or tampons and sticking them in their purses or their book bags and whatnot.

00:10:22:06 - 00:10:43:23
Dr. Julie Chaya
We want to make sure that if they are in a situation where they do not have access to these products, that they can get through their menstrual cycle for the month. All right. So we're going to do pop quiz on which colors of your period are normal or not. Here we go. So red, is that normal or not?

00:10:44:22 - 00:11:03:15
Dr. Julie Chaya
Yes. Red is normal. Yes, red is normal. That was the easy one. Okay. So throughout your menstrual cycle, the majority of your periods should be a shade of red. It can be light red, medium red or dark red. Okay.

00:11:03:20 - 00:11:20:09
Miles Dietz-Castel
As you remember from the teenagers earlier, our schools aren't really teaching much about menstruation. So that's where the NNLM comes in to help. Someone may not feel comfortable talking directly to a librarian, so Dr. Chaya tells us how she plans on having educational materials inside the bathrooms with the dispensers.

00:11:21:00 - 00:11:47:22
Dr. Julie Chaya
Passing out free stuff is awesome and really makes everybody feel good. However, we saw this as an opportunity to really educate and empower people to learn more about menstrual health and just their health in general. So any time somebody visits one of our dispensers in any of the restrooms, there is always a newsletter that we update monthly with all sorts of facts and information about menstrual health.

00:11:48:06 - 00:12:10:09
Dr. Julie Chaya
We have a QR code on the dispensers themselves, as well as the newsletters that people can scan so that they can go to that website to check out more about menstrual health. And we also offer lots of fun, different quizzes and surveys so that we can collect data to further learn about what is it that people need going forward with their menstrual health.

00:12:10:18 - 00:12:28:17
Dr. Julie Chaya
NNLM has been a huge help with this effort. They have been providing us support to help build our website that is supposed to be completely medically accurate, culturally relevant and age appropriate on everything and anything menstrual health.

00:12:28:21 - 00:12:48:09
Miles Dietz-Castel
Another way NNLM is assisting this project is through our Region Six POP Program. POP stands for Partner Outreach Program. We train ambassadors throughout our region to help educate minority communities about the NNLM services and programs. Carla James is our POP liaison in Mansfield and is educating minorities about this Free Flow program.

00:12:49:07 - 00:13:12:10
Carla James
This population that we are targeting are medically underserved. So, you know, that speaks to itself. They're medically underserved. They need health literacy, they need information. Just any time, I believe at any time you cut down on barriers and anxiety and just one less thing that a young girl has to worry about. And I hope that it gives her a sense of hope.

00:13:12:11 - 00:13:25:20
Carla James
I believe that it will. I think I think back to my younger self and how this would have impacted me and how I would have felt. So I hope that it gives them a sense of hope. I hope that it continues to grow. And I really hope that the community just wraps around it and supports it.

00:13:26:23 - 00:13:31:18
Miles Dietz-Castel
So we'll end our story today with Dr. Chaya explaining her long term goals for this pilot program.

00:13:32:12 - 00:13:56:00
Dr. Julie Chaya
So this is a pilot program definitely for something bigger. We want to make sure that menstrual equity is available for all. So we're starting here in Richland County and hopefully soon we will be all throughout the state of Ohio, Region Six of NNLM and then throughout the rest of the U.S. with NNLM. And I cannot wait to see other libraries across the country do this same project as well.

00:13:56:12 - 00:14:02:21
Yamila El-Khayat
Wow, Miles, this story was incredible. Is Region Six expanding this pilot program like Dr. Chaya mentioned?

00:14:03:03 - 00:14:10:16
Miles Dietz-Castel
Yes, we actually have an advisory board in Ohio that's already voted to make this project their initiative to implement in all libraries across the state.

00:14:11:02 - 00:14:15:06
Yamila El-Khayat
Thanks, Miles. I look forward to hearing how this gets expanded throughout the country.

00:14:15:12 - 00:14:17:09
Miles Dietz-Castel
You're welcome. I'll definitely keep you updated.

00:14:17:12 - 00:14:42:23
Yamila El-Khayat
I can't wait. We’ll be featuring other profiles, grants and other interesting information from all of our Regions during this season of NNLM Discovery. For more information, including a video featuring content from this story, check out the links within this episode's description. The NNLM offers free training, partnerships and many resources that help to improve health and wellness. Learn more at NNLM.gov.