APRIL 2014
Feature: Advocates for Youth has three new factsheets!
Young People and Sexually Transmitted Infections: Underlying Risk Factors Leave Some More Vulnerable. In the United States, sexually active young people experience high rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which can endanger their long-term health; some STIs are incurable, while others damage the reproductive system if left untreated. Some populations of youth face higher risk of STIs –African American/Black youth, young women, homeless youth, and young men who have sex with men (YMSM). This factsheet examines steps young people can take to reduce their risk of STIs in addition to factors beyond their control that put many at heightened risk. To access the factsheet, click here.
Young People and Dating Violence: Teaching Healthy Relationship Skills to Protect Health and Well-Being. This factsheet examines the current data on dating violence; the factors that contribute to dating violence; how dating violence impacts multiple health and sexual health risks; and dating violence prevention and treatment strategies. To access the factsheet, click here.
The Reproductive and Sexual Health of Young Men of Color: Redressing Disparities and Engaging YMOC in Prevention. This factsheet explores how young men of color are making healthy decisions regarding their reproductive and sexual health and how despite recent progress they still face stark health disparities. In addition, the factsheet outlines how programs that engage young men of color based on their needs can positively influence their behavior. To access the full article, click here.
Capacity Building and Professional Development
School-Based Health Care Convention. The 2014 School-Based Health Care Convention will be held in Seattle, Washington, June 29-July 2, 2014. The theme for this year is School-Based Health Care: The Convergence of Population Health, Education, and Primary Care. To learn more about the conference, review 2014 workshops, and register for the conference, click here.
National Sex Ed Conference. This conference is the largest gathering of sexuality educators in the world. The conference draws on the expertise of educators from across the United States and internationally to support continuing education for sexuality educators from a wide range of fields including nursing, college teachers, to Planned Parenthood educators and more. The conference will be held in Meadowlands, New Jersey from December 3-5, 2014. Abstracts for the conference are due Wednesday, April 30, 2014. To learn more about the conference, click here. To submit a workshop proposal, click here.
Nuts and Bolts: The Essential Package for Starting a School-Based Health Center. This webinar hosted by the School-Based Health Alliance will cover which SBHC models to choose from; which stakeholders to bring to the table; costs; and how long starting a SBHC can take. Join the webinar to learn from experts who help SBHC’s start every day. The webinar will be held on Tuesday, April 15 at 3:00pm EDT. To register for the webinar, click here.
Resources
Moving Beyond Clients: Creating Effective Youth-Adult Partnerships. This archived webinar by Children’s Hospital Los Angeles introduces the core concepts of youth-adult partnerships and discusses concrete ways youth service providers can increase their capacity to build effective partnerships with youth at all levels. To access the archived webinar and related materials, click here.
Quick Health Data Online. Quick Health Data Online is an interactive system that provides reliable and easily accessible health data to help assess needs, develop programs, and inform policies. The system is for anyone looking for U.S. health data and is used by the public health community, policymakers, grant writers, researchers, and students. For more information and to access the tool, click here.
How & Where Youth Live, Learn, & Play Matters: The Social-Ecological Health Promotion Model & Social Determinants of Health. Healthy Teen Network promotes a Youth 360° frame using the social-ecological health promotion model. This model allows communities to recognize, explore, and address social determinants of health according to the influential spheres – individual, relationship, community, and societal – moving beyond a focus on individual behavior, toward an understanding of the wide range of factors on health outcomes. To learn more about the 360° approach and to view the model diagram, click here.
Recent Publications
Reducing Teen Childbearing among Latinos: An innovative anti-poverty strategy. An interdisciplinary team of social scientists at Child Trends used multiple research methods to identify promising approaches to reduce early childbearing among Latino adolescents. This work included a review of research studies, a scan of intervention programs, focus groups with adolescents, interviews with parents and with program designers and program staff, as well as analyses of national data bases. To read the full research brief for more information on major findings and implications for teen pregnancy prevention efforts for Latinos, click here.
The Core Competencies for Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health. The Adolescent Sexual Health Work Group commissioned the development of core competencies that define the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for all providers of adolescent sexual health and reproductive health. This article describes the background and rationale for this set of competencies, the history and use of competencies, and the process involved in creating the core competencies. It explores the ways that educators can use them to strengthen classroom instruction and improve outcomes for adolescents in the area of reproductive health. To access the journal article, click here.
Providing Adolescent Sexual Health Care in the Pediatric Emergency Department: Views of Health Care Providers. The purpose of this study was to explore health care providers’ attitudes and beliefs about adolescent sexual health care provision in the emergency department (ED) and to identify barriers to a health educator-based intervention. Health care providers perceived limited behavioral control over care delivery because of time constraints, confidentiality issues, and comfort level. The study found however that despite challenges unique to the ED, health care providers were supportive of the intervention and perceived the health educator as a resource to improve adolescent care and services. To access the journal article, click here.
Announcements
What A Small Town’s Teen Pregnancy Turnaround Can Teach The U.S. Thirty years ago, the small town of Denmark, South Carolina, had one of the state’s highest teen pregnancy rates. Through the dedicated efforts of parents and organizations such as the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen pregnancy, today Denmark has one of the lowest teen pregnancy rates in the state. In addition, every student receives comprehensive sex education starting in middle school. While these changes were hard-found over many years, strategies for success included the engagement of churches and young men. To read the full article, click here.
Youth Group to Host HIV Awareness Event April 10. In recognition of National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day on Thursday, April 10, a youth leadership program of Project ARK and The SPOT will host an open-mic event to encourage young people to talk about HIV/AIDS and sexual health. The Youth Advocacy Committee’s mission is to allow and encourage St. Louis-area youth to have a voice on the topic of HIV/AIDS and sexual health. To read the full article, click here.
To submit an article, announcement, or resource for the School Health Equity Newsletter, please call Sulava at 202.419.3420 ext. 65 or email her at sulava@advocatesforyouth.org.
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