Health officials in the Lanaudiere are getting flak for giving out expired condoms to high school students in Terrebonne.
The condoms were handed out on Wednesday to Secondary 5 students at Armand-Corbeil School as part of ethics and religion class
Students later noticed the prophylactics had expired almost three years ago, leading some students to take to social media warning each other not to use them.
Over the next two days, the school sent out emails to students and then to their parents
“We reacted very quickly to be sure that students weren't using the condoms and we don't have any information that students used the wrong condom,” said Eric Ladouceur of des Affluents School Board.
Both Health Canada and Planned Parenthood warn that expired condoms are more likely to break and could be ineffective in protecting people from STIs and pregnancy.
Some Secondary 5 students, who CTV agreed not to identify, point out the irony in the situation.
“They talk about safety – what we should do, what we shouldn't do, how we should use condoms – and then they give us expired condoms,” said one student.
Health officials from the CISSS Lanaudiere – who handing out the condoms – said they recently moved where they stored the condoms and somehow an old box which should have been thrown out got mixed in with the new ones.
According to the school board, only 20 expired condoms were distributed.
Health officials say it was a learning experience for the students and the entire school to double check the expiry date on condom wrappers.
