Delivery of an efficacious teen pregnancy prevention program for Latino families: Promotores as a novel dissemination strategy

Despite notable declines in the U.S. teen birth rate, Latino teen pregnancy remains a critical public health concern. Forty four percent of Latinos get pregnant at least once before age 20, which is two times higher than the national average. Latinos constitute the nation’s largest minority group with the highest teen birth rate, warranting targeted efforts to address the barriers and facilitators of sexual risk behaviors. As parents play an important role in teens’ sexual decision making, family based interventions can be efficacious in reducing sexual risk behaviors. We utilized an implementation science framework to identify strategies for delivering an evidence-based family teen pregnancy prevention intervention, Families Talking Together (FTT), to Latino families in California communities with high rates of teen pregnancy. Engagement with key stakeholders and community members identified promotores or community health workers as contextually appropriate for intervention dissemination. Formative data demonstrated promotores as feasible and acceptable mechanisms for implementing FTT. Promotores’ direct outreach to parents at their homes and culturally appropriate knowledge were integral to the implementation process. Our research demonstrates strategic models for engaging promotores to disseminate teen pregnancy interventions, and highlights promotores as a resource for addressing sexual health disparities.