Rachel Jones, PhD, Alan Guttmacher Institute, 120 Wall Street, New York, NY 10005, 2122481111 ext. 2262, rjones@guttmacher.org

Anecdotal evidence suggests that staff at family planning clinics in the United States encourage adolescent clients to involve parents in their reproductive health decisions, but national information is not available. This study will collect surveys from 80 large family planning clinics across the United States to investigate the ways that they promote parent-child communication. Sampled clinics vary in terms of facility type, location, client load, and receipt of Title X funding. Preliminary findings from 73 clinics indicate that 89% of facilities counsel all or almost all minor adolescents receiving confidential contraceptive services about discussing issues related to sexual behavior with their parents. One-half of clinics provide more in-depth counseling for teens under the age of 18 relative to teens aged 18-19. Ninety percent of clinics also provide information on this issue through mechanisms such as pamphlet distribution, the internet, telephone hotlines, public media campaigns and community social events. Finally, a sizeable minority of clinics, 42%, have formal educational programs to facilitate communication between parents and youth. Facilities without such programs identified barriers such as lack of both funding and trained staff. Clinics provided detailed information about program activities and audiences, and this information will be summarized in the presentation. Findings from this study will be used to inform public policy on the issue of mandated parental involvement for minor adolescents seeking family planning services.

Learning Objectives:

In attending this session, participants will be able to
• Assess the role that family planning clinics play in fostering family involvement and the characteristics of those clinics;
• Describe the range of activities that family planning clinics currently implement to improve communication between youth and parents;
• Recognize the need for such programs while identifying the factors that restrict parental involvement efforts both in the clinical setting and in communities.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.