Background

With global estimates suggesting that 45-65% of pregnancies are unplanned (Mathers 2022), there is an urgent need for effective education in alternatives to mainstream forms of contraception, such as natural family planning methods. Unfortunately, access to Sympto-Thermal Methods courses is limited, particularly for those who are most vulnerable to unplanned pregnancies. We aim to develop and test an innovative, immersive Fertility Awareness Training program centered on the Symptothermal Method (STM).

Objective

By utilizing advanced technologies like virtual reality (VR), this project seeks to provide an essential service, supporting sexually active people with additional knowledge and tools to make informed reproductive choices. We aim to educate individuals and couples with a user-friendly, engaging platform that enhances their understanding and application of STM. Our approach aims to address the lack of access to fertility awareness that is widespread and available to LGBTQ2+ folks, while being religion-neutral and judgement-free, particularly for populations at higher risk of unintended pregnancies.

The Team

Principal Investigator: Dr. Farah Shroff, Department of Family Practice

Student Team:

• Naomi Ng, Project Lead, UI/UX Designer (May 2025-August 2025)
• Shivangi Singh, UI/UX Designer (May 2025-August 2025)
• Billy Wang, Developer (May 2025-August 2025)
• Apram Ahuja, Developer (May 2025-August 2025)