Teens as parents program: A community partnership providing services to teen parents

Purpose: Teens as Parents (TAP) is a teen pregnancy prevention program that supports teens in obtaining prenatal health care, learning parenting skills, and learning decision-making skills while continuing their education; reduces preterm birth rates; and prevents subsequent teen pregnancy.

Methods: With March of Dimes grant funding, TAP provides in-home/school visitation to teen parents. Physicians, social services, health departments, and schools make referrals. A TAP social worker conducts assessments and develops a care plan including obtaining prenatal health care, improving parenting skills, preventing a subsequent pregnancy, and setting educational goals. An outreach worker, acting as a mentor, develops a relationship with the teen and her family, coordinates needed services, and provides weekly educational lessons using Pregnancy Workshop, a March of Dimes research-based curriculum. Participants also attend monthly peer support group meetings.

Results: TAP serves approximately 100 teens each year in rural Harnett County, NC. In 2006 the repeat pregnancy rate for TAP program participants was 0% compared to the county rate of 32%. 100% of the teens attended prenatal appointments regularly. All of their babies were born healthy at a gestational age of at least 37 weeks. The teen pregnancy rate in Harnett County declined dramatically from 46th in 2005 to 78th in 2006 out of 100 counties in North Carolina.