Second-year PhD student Danielle Phillips, shown here, is among authors of new research titled "Trauma-Informed Pregnancy Prevention & Sexual Health Promotion for Youth Experiencing Homelessness: Initial Outcomes." The work appears in a recent issue of Children and Youth Services Review. This paper examines longitudinal outcomes to 6 months and participants' perspectives on the program among Wahine Talk's first two cohorts of youth. [Download the Paper]
ABSTRACT
Female youth experiencing homelessness are at high risk for pregnancy due to a host of individual, family, and community-level risk factors. This embedded mixed-method quasi-experimental pilot study examined the initial outcomes of Wahine (woman) Talk, a comprehensive sexual health program delivered by an interdisciplinary team to female youth experiencing homelessness. Wahine Talk includes provision of and connection to basic needs resources, peer mentoring, group based sexual health education, and linkage to and provision of sexual health care. Process and outcome data were collected throughout and for six months after Wahine Talk from a diverse group of 14–22-year-old female youth (N = 51) experiencing homelessness. In-depth individual and focus group interview data were collected from providers and youth after Wahine Talk, and analyzed using Template Analysis. Over half (62.7%) of participants were linked to sexual health care during Wahine Talk and birth control usage tripled following the program. Depo-Provera and long acting reversible contraception (LARC) usage, in particular, increased during Wahine Talk (1–19% and 0–25.5%, respectively). Within six months, 31.4% of youth had adopted LARC and 3.9% were using Depo-Provera. Individual and focus group interviews with providers and youth affirm program acceptability and appropriateness.
AUTHORS: Elizabeth M. Aparicio, Olivia Kachingwe, Danielle R. Phillips, Jamie Fleishman, Julie Novick, Trisha Okimoto, M. P. Cabral, Lana Sue Ka‘opua, Christine Childers, Jason Espero & Kent Anderson.