Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention
Professional Resource Guide
Table of Contents
Introduction
This professional resource guide directs readers to a selection of current, high-quality resources about adolescent pregnancy prevention that measure, document, and monitor the problem; identify risk and protective factors; and report on promising intervention strategies. It can be used by health and social services professionals, policymakers, and researchers to learn more about the topic, for program development, and to locate training resources and information to answer specific questions. Separate briefs identify resources for families and schools. The path has been compiled by the MCH Digital Library at Georgetown University and will be updated periodically.
Overview
The birth rate for U.S. adolescents ages 15–19 in 2013 was 26.6 per 1,000 (National Center for Health Statistics, 2014), down 57% from 1991, but still the highest birth rate in the Western industrialized world (World Development Indicators, 2012). Adolescent pregnancy and childbirth have serious consequences for the adolescent mother, the child, and society in general. For example, adolescent mothers are more likely to live in poverty. Infants born to adolescent mothers are more likely to have lower birthweights. And adolescent pregnancy imposes large costs on U.S. taxpayers — billions of dollars annually — in terms of the services and support provided to families that began with a birth to an adolescent.Resources for Professionals
Websites
- Administration for
Children and Families (ACF): Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention. Tools and resources to support state, tribal, and community efforts to promote comprehensive sex education, adulthood preparation programs, and abstinence education to
prevent adolescent pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections.
- Advocates
for Youth. Data, reports, lesson plans, information about effective
programs, and news and commentary about adolescent
sexual and reproductive health for health professionals, educators, and
advocates. Topics address abstinence, abortion, contraception, parent-child
communication, sexuality education, and adolescent-pregnancy prevention.
Advocates
for Youth aims to help adolescents and young adults make informed and
responsible decisions about their reproductive and sexual health.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC).
Division of Reproductive Health: Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health. Information about programs, research, evidenced-based approaches preventing adolescent pregnancy. See sections on Teen Pregnancy, Tips for Parents and Guardians on how to support your teen
Guide to Community Preventive Services: Prevention of HIV/AIDS, other STIs and Pregnancy. Recommendations for population-based interventions that focus on abstinence education, comprehensive risk reduction, and adolescent behavior.
National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Briefs and reports with data about adolescent sexual activity, contraception, pregnancy, and birth rates.
Also see CDC's Reducing Health Risks Among Youth,
the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS),
and the Prevention Research Centers - Child
Trends: Sexual and Reproductive Health. Research briefs, fact sheets,
and other publications about sexual activity, contraceptive use, and
fertility to help program providers and policymakers develop strategies
for preventing unintended pregnancies, nonmarital births, and STDs. Child
Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization providing research
and data to inform decision-making that affects families.
- Guttmacher Institute.
Fact sheets, policy briefs, reports, articles, PowerPoint presentations,
and news about adolescent sexuality, abortion, contraception, and pregnancy
prevention. Some materials are available in Spanish and French. Also presents
State Policy Resources for research
and analysis about sexual and reproductive health laws and policy developments. The Guttmacher Institute focuses on sexual and reproductive
health research, policy analysis, and public education worldwide. Also see the Guttmacher Institute Data Center.
- Healthy People 2030. Information about this national health-promotion and disease-prevention initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services. View the overview, objectives, and recommended interventions and resources for adolescent health, including adolescent pregnancy.
- Healthy Teen Network (HTN).
Reports, resource guides, fact sheets, webinars, and a conference calendar
about adolescent pregnancy prevention, adolescent pregnancy, and adolescent
parenting. HTN is a national member-based organization of adolescent reproductive
health professionals. Resources include
- National Alliance to Advance
Adolescent Health. Fact sheets, issue briefs, reports, and
journal article citations about health care topics important to adolescents,
such as health insurance and access to care; development of adolescent-friendly,
interdisciplinary models of care; and assurance of confidential care.
The alliance provides education, research, policy analysis, and technical
assistance to support improvements in the way that adolescent health
care is structured and financed.
- Power to Decide. (Originally known as The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy). Resources about adolescent pregnancy prevention for health and
education professionals, policymakers, parents, adolescents,
and the media. Resources include national and state
policy information, programs,
research and data, and news and commentary. Topics
include contraception, foster care, male involvement, parental involvement,
the influence of media on adolescent sexual health, health reform, racial
and ethnic differences, and faith and values. Power to Decide is
a nonprofit, nonpartisan initiative that aims to improve the well-being
of children, adolescents, families, and the nation by preventing unplanned
and adolescent pregnancy.
- Office of Population
Affairs (OPA). Information about family planning and adolescent
family life grant programs. Includes Adolescents Health resources, program reports, data, evaluation
instruments, lists of grantees, a Title X Clinic Locator for Family Planning Services, and a publications list. OPA is part of
the Department of Health and Human Services
(DHHS).
- Reproductive Health National Training Center (RHNTC). Resources for Title X family planning grantees and agencies to deliver reproductive health services to the Title X community and beyond. Includes family planning guidelines, fact sheets, and other publications; webinars and courses; and information on events, the Affordable Care Act, new recommendations, and communities of practice. (formerly Family Planning National Training Centers (FPNTC))
- SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change. Resources about human
sexuality and adolescent development that include program information;
policy, advocacy, and research updates; and advocacy and education tools.
SIECUS is a national, nonprofit organization that provides education
and information about sexuality and sexual and reproductive health. (formerly Sexuality Information
and Education Council of the U.S. (SIECUS))
Also see SIECUS' Future of Sex Education (FoSE).
- Society for Adolescent Health
and Medicine (SAHM). Position
papers on topics that include abstinence-only education policies
and programs, confidential health care for adolescents, emergency contraception,
media and contraception, and reproductive health care for adolescents.
Also offers an online
directory of adolescent health professionals.
- Sociometrics. An online provider of evidence-based curricula, professional development courses, and datasets for health professionals and educators. Includes the Program
Sexual Health and Adolescence Risk Prevention (SHARP) (formerly PASHA), an online program
of effective adolescent pregnancy, sexually transmitted disease (STD),
and HIV/AIDS prevention programs selected for public dissemination by
a national panel of experts. Sociometrics is a research
and development firm specializing in social science research applications.
Reports, Briefs, and Other Resources
- See the MCH Digital Library's bibliography, Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention, for a selection of
materials on the topic published in the last ten years. Separate bibliographies cover abstinence-only
education and sexuality
education.
Data and Statistics
- Search the following databases for access to additional data and statistics about adolescent
pregnancy. The MCH Digital Library resource brief, Maternal
and Child Health Data and Statistics, describes these databases and offers
tips for searching them.
Guttmacher Institute Data Center
Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP): HCUPnet
Healthy People 2030: Data Sources and Methods
National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy
National Center for Health Statistics (NCSH): Surveys and Data Collection Systems
National Vital Statistics Reports
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Teen Birth Rate by State
Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)
Title V Information System (TVIS)
VitalStats
Literature and Research Databases
Search the following databases for access to additional literature and
research about adolescent pregnancy prevention. The MCH Digital Library
resource brief, Maternal
and Child Health Literature and Research Databases describes these
databases and offers tips for searching them.
Healthy People 2030 Evidence-Based Resources
Morbidity and
Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Series
National Guideline Clearinghouse
(NGC)
POPLINE® (POPulation information onLINE)
PubMed
State Policy Research
Programs Databases
Search the following databases for information about additional programs focusing
on adolescent pregnancy prevention. The MCH Digital Library resource brief, Maternal
and Child Health Programs Databases, describes these
databases and offers tips for searching them.
Discretionary
Grant Information System (DGIS)
Health Care Innovations Exchange
Health
Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj)
MCH Organizations Database
News and Commentary
- Advocates
for Youth. Get E-mail Updates and text alerts about latest programs on adolescent reproductive and sexual
health policy, culture, current events and research. Also offers a Media Center focused on policy statements and Press Releases adolescent reproductive and sexual health.
- Guttmacher
Institute E-mail Updates. Keep current with the latest research and policy analysis on sexual and reproductive health and rights. Guttmacher Updates include news alerts, announcements of upcoming events and new publications, and newsletters.
- National
Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO): Adolescent Health Update. Search the NACCHO Voice blog for adolescent health resources, conferences, funding opportunities, and news for professionals
working in local health departments. Topics include adolescent pregnancy
prevention.
- Power to Decide. (Originally known as The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy) Find Articles and Blogs and a Newsroom that covers adolescent pregnancy
prevention facts, data, research, publications, program information,
and media messages.
Resources for Families
- See the MCH Digital Library family resource brief Teen
Pregnancy Prevention.
Resources for Schools
- See the MCH Digital Library school resource brief Sexuality Education.
Related MCH Digital Library Resources
- Community Services Locator: An Online Directory for Finding Community Services for Children and Families professional resource guide
- Health Insurance and Access to Care for Children and Adolescents professional resource guide, family resource brief
- School-Based and School-Linked Health Care school resource brief
- Sexuality Education resource brief
- Social and Emotional Development in Children and Adolescents professional resource guide, family resource brief, school resource brief
Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention: Professional Resource Guide.
Author: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., MCH Digital Library.
Reviewers: Olivia K. Pickett, M.A., M.L.S., MCH Digital Library;
Katherine Suellentrop, M.P.H., The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned
Pregnancy.
Editor: Ruth Barzel, M.A., MCH Digital Library.