The University beat Florida by 18 points on Friday – not in football, but in sexual health.

Trojan released its annual “Sexual Health Report Card” Friday, and the University moved from ninth place in 2008 to sixth place this year, besting all other schools in the SEC except the University of South Carolina, which ranked No. 1.

“It’s always a compilation of a whole lot of things, a whole lot of people, and generally it’s the collaboration and the student voice that makes a difference in these rankings,” said Katy Janousek, sexual health coordinator for the University’s Health Center, in an interview Monday.

The Sexual Health Report Card is compiled by independent research firm Sperling’s BestPlaces, which analyzes data from 141 colleges and universities. The firm examines health centers and student opinion polls across 13 categories – including contraceptive and condom availability, HIV testing and student peer groups.

Janousek said an independent student organization called Sexual Health Helpers at UGA, or SHHUGA, now serves as the connection between University faculty and students.

“A lot of health education is totally lost if you’re not relevant, so it’s really important to have student involvement – a student perspective,” she said.

Janousek said she tells students being sexually active is a personal choice that should align with their personal beliefs and values, and students should communicate those beliefs and values with their partner.

She said she tells students the only 100 percent effective method for preventing pregnancy and STIs is abstinence.

“From there, if you choose not to practice abstinence, there are some fantastic hormonal birth control methods that are highly, highly effective,” she said, noting students should remember birth control offers zero protection against STIs. “So, always using a male condom correctly and consistently is important for STI prevention.”

Janousek said the biggest improvement the Health Center has made in the two years she’s worked there is in the way condoms are distributed.

“It used to be that we’d just have out loose condoms and lube and we would often get what I called ‘condom bandits,’” she said, referring to students who took condoms in bulk amounts.

Janousek said her department now packages small bags containing three condom samples, a sample of water-based lube and an informational brochure for students.

She said condom availability on campus has also improved in the past two years, and condoms are now available at several locations across campus.

Last year, the Health Center gave away about 1,500 free condoms each month, and Janousek said she usually places two orders a year for 10,000 condoms.

“[We let] students know the choice to be sexually active is a personal choice, and how you’re going to protect yourself is your own decision,” she said. “You have to be responsible enough to choose the best protection for you and your partner, and we’ve got some great methods that are available. But from there on, you’ve got to make your own decision.”