 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
John Beleutz, MPH and Abi Brown, BA. Population Services International, 406 Main Street, Suite 423, Watsonville, CA 95076
Population Services International (PSI) is advocating for improved adolescent access to emergency contraception (EC) in California. Nearly 900,000 adolescents ages 15-19 become pregnant each year in the United States; 82% of these teen pregnancies are unintended. EC could annually prevent as many as 50% of pregnancies and consequent abortions among teenagers.
PSI’s EC Advocacy Project targets the health care provider community and addresses barriers that prevent teens from accessing EC. Specifically, the program is advocating for: EC education for all adolescent patients; advanced provision and prescription of EC; ongoing staff education about EC; and improved protocols that allow teens to access EC in a timely manner. PSI has developed an EC Advocacy Toolkit (with video) and a provider resource guide. With the help of these tools, PSI is recruiting, training and supporting “EC Advocates” around California in their efforts to improve EC access in their communities.
During the session, PSI’s experience with advocating for improved adolescent access to EC in California will be presented and lessons learned from that experience will be discussed.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Advocacy, Teen Pregnancy Prevention
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: PSI
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employeed by PSI