Native Sexual Health Education App, a Digital Solution for Empowering Iranian Women

Abstract

Women's sexual health is correlated with their individual and social well-being and poses serious challenges in society. Cultural taboos, limitations in formal education, and the lack of reliable and accessible information resources have led to the neglect of women's educational needs in this area. On the other hand, despite the development of digital and mobile technologies, existing domestic applications in the field of sexual health often lack scientific support and cultural values. In this regard, this policy report, based on the findings of the cross-sectional review study, emphasized the need for targeted planning and action in the form of policy options. The strategies presented indicate that "designing and implementing a native mobile-based application for women's sexual health education" can be effective, taking into account the implementation requirements. Among the requirements is the creation of strategic partnerships between health institutions, including the Ministry of Health and universities of medical sciences, technology developers, and social science and sociology experts, to simultaneously consider scientific validity, technical infrastructure, and cultural acceptance for providing these training sessions and empowering women. However, such an implementation also faces obstacles such as social taboos, budget constraints, and technical challenges; nonetheless, pilot implementation in several provinces and simultaneous monitoring and validation of digital content will lead to greater risk management and efficiency. In this policy report, the design and development of such a local sexual health education application is proposed to health policymakers for health intervention, with the aim of gender empowerment and reducing the burden of costly diseases. © 2025, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved.