background/significance: Hispanic students had a lower rate of HPV vaccination initiation (46%) compared to their Caucasian counterparts (51%). Limited studies identifying HPV information seeking and communication channels focus on Hispanic/Latino college students.

purposes: (a) identified sources and communications regarding HPV information and (b) factors associated with sources of HPV information among Hispanic/Latino college students in the U.S.

methods: Using a self-report questionnaire and convenience sampling, 209 participants were recruited from different US universities.

results: Only 72% had heard of HPV and HPV vaccine. The majority used health professionals (50%) as their sources and communications of HPV information. Participants having been vaccinated were more likely to use family members (OR = 2.841, 95%CI: 1.127-7.143, p = 0.027) and health professionals (OR = 3.44, 95%CI: 1.742-6.803, p < .001) as sources of HPV information. Participants with better HPV knowledge were more likely to use television (OR = 1.032, 95%CI: 1.013-1.052, p = 0.001), school teachers (OR = 1.019, 95%CI: 1.003-1.035, p = 0.018), and health professionals (OR = 1.025, 95%CI: 1.011-1.041, p = 0.001) as sources of HPV information. Catholic participants (OR = 2.034, 95%CI: 1.011-4.093, p = 0.047) were more likely to use the internet as a source of HPV information.

discussion/conclusions: Television, healthcare professionals, family members, and school teachers influenced HPV vaccination and HPV knowledge among Hispanic/Latino students. Future policy, research, and practices should focus on tailoring interventions that fit students’ communication styles for health information. Religious faith may affect health information seeking behaviors among Hispanics and needs further investigation.

School-based health centers (SBHCs) offer a unique opportunity to deliver sexual and reproductive health interventions that integrate both prevention education and clinical care. However, very few sexual health education interventions have been developed or expressly tested in SBHCs. This study describes the SBHC service utilization behaviors of 9^th-10^th graders at 7 California schools with a majority Latinx student population. Data come from baseline surveys (N=474) collected between Spring 2018 and Fall 2019 in an evaluation of a healthy relationships intervention, aimed at reducing unintended pregnancy and STIs in vulnerable (and mostly Latinx) youth, delivered through SBHCs in California. Surveys and analyses examined SBHC sexual health service utilization behavior, intentions, and perceived barriers (among participating youth) by gender, age, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation. The proportion of youth accessing sexual health services at SBHCs varied by gender (53% of young women and 29% of young men), age (7% age 14, 68% age 15, 24% age 16, and 25% age 17), race (25.5% Latinx and 21.0% non-Latinx), and sexuality (16% sexual minority youth and 20% non-sexual minority youth). The most frequently accessed sexual health service across the entire sample was the procurement of condoms (18%), and the most commonly reported barriers to accessing SBHC services were worries that the visits would not be confidential (36.5%) or that the clinic staff would be judgmental (30.7%). Implications for future programming and areas of research will be discussed.

Introduction: Providing tools aiming at supporting informed decisions and aiding adolescents to thrive are critical for strengthening prevention mechanism later in life. The purpose of this work is to determine change in knowledge, comprehension, understanding, capacity and self-efficacy for developing healthy relationships after implementing Relationship Smarts Plus 4 curricula.

Methods: A total of 938 middle school Puerto Rican students were impacted by the intervention. A pre-post design was conducted to determine changes before and after participation. Knowledge, understanding, capacity, and comprehension domains scores ranged from (1) poor to (4) excellent. Self-efficacy ranged from (1) less confident to (4) a lot more confident. Each domain comprised a set of questions added and the greater the numbers better the scores. Frequency and central tendency measures were used to determine distribution. Paired sample t test was used to determine changes in mean scores.

Results: The pre-posts assessments found statistically significant differences between entry and exit scores at different domains of knowledge (33.6 vs. 37.8, p<0.001), understanding (67.9 vs. 81.8, p<0.001), capacity (44.4 vs. 50.7, p<0.001), comprehension (27.7 vs. 31.0, p <0.001), and self-efficacy (16.5 vs. 17.4, p<0.001).

Discussion: Relationship Smarts Plus 4.0 was effectively implemented and with great success among Puerto Rican students. As anticipated, adolescents reported improvement for the measure scores regarding forming healthy relationships. Self-efficacy measure was the lowest difference reported and it is assumed that it could be related to the type of construct. Despite promising results among Puerto Rican students more scientific rigor is needed to determine its effectiveness.

Many school-based health centers (SBHCs) and community college health clinics (CCHCs) provide critical health care services to underserved young people who, for a variety of reasons, have difficulty utilizing the traditional health care system. However, providing family planning services (FPS) to young people can be challenging for SBHCs and CCHCs, in part because of policy obstacles, stakeholder opposition, and shortages of trained staff.

Some SBHCs have adopted innovative strategies to improve patient access to FPS, including “Quick Start” LARC protocols, health educators, and mobile phone applications for contraceptive counseling. Little is known, however, about the broad range of innovative approaches that SBHCs and CCHCs are using, the factors that promote successful implementation, or the experiences of providers and clients using these approaches. Identifying and sharing strategies for providing FPS in school-based settings has the potential to improve FPS around the country and address unmet family planning needs for underserved young people.

This presentation will describe work funded by the Office of Population Affairs combining a literature review, 50 in-depth interviews of SBHC and CCHC providers, and analyses of the School-Based Health Alliance’s Census data. We will share findings from the study’s first year, highlighting promising areas of innovation and specific strategies school-based clinics are using to provide FPS, as well as contextual factors that increased success and sustainability.

Background: Perceived condom use norms are important in the context of condom use decision-making, but prior studies have not evaluated these variables in a large, national survey of youth in Australia.

Methods: A large, national survey of 14-18 year-olds in Australia was conducted to investigate condom use during respondents’ most recent sexual experience. The main predictor variables were condom use norms, including respondents’ perceptions of same-aged peers’ condom use frequency and perceptions of whether boys, girls, or both suggest condom use. Logistic regression estimated the relationship between sociodemographic variables, condom use norms, and condom use at last sexual experience.

Results: Overall, 3,947 people (47%) reported ever having sexual intercourse, 54% (n=2,141) reported using a condom during their last sexual experience. Those who reported the perception that all same-age peers used condoms had higher odds of using condoms during their last sexual experience (aOR: 4.01[1.41,11.82]). There was no evidence of an association between condom use during last sexual experience and perceptions of whether boys, girls, or both suggest condom use. Female respondents compared to males had higher odds of reporting condom use (aOR: 1.28[1.10, 1.50) or if they attended government, Catholic, or independent schools rather than being out of school (aORs:1.52[1.21,1.91];1.74[1.34,2.26];1.82[1.38,2.41]).

Conclusion: As part of a holistic approach to helping young people access appropriate sexual health education and services, sexual health educators and service providers may emphasize that young people frequently choose to use condoms to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections.

background:

Given the relatively low percent of adolescents who complete the HPV vaccine series and increased autonomy of college-aged adults, college students may be an ideal target population for catch-up vaccination. The current study aims to estimate the HPV vaccine uptake among undergraduate students and to identify student characteristics associated with vaccine choices as well as facilitators and barriers influencing HPV vaccination.

methods:

A convenience sample of undergraduate health and human services students were recruited to complete a cross-sectional survey. The instrument consists of 9 questions assessing knowledge of HPV and the HPV vaccine, 18 questions assessing HPV attitudes, 1 question assessing vaccine status, and 12 demographics questions. Data analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and stepwise logistic regression modeling.

results:

A convenience sample of 245 undergraduate students completed the survey. Results showed that knowledge and attitudes were lower among students who reported that they were unsure of their vaccine status or that they never received the HPV vaccines compared to students who started or completed the HPV vaccine series. Logistic regression modeling highlighted significant barriers toward completing the vaccine series.

conclusions:

The findings suggest that school health education and services to increase HPV vaccine uptake should tailor to the attitudes and needs of students. Education campaigns are most likely to be effective among students who either reported unvaccinated or unsure if they were vaccinated while interventions addressing the logistics of getting HPV vaccine would be beneficial for students who started the series but did not complete.

Background: The Montefiore School Health Program (MSHP) is a network of 31 school-based health centers (SBHCs). The 12 high school health centers serve 55 high schools and 23,500 students aged 12-22 years in the Bronx, NY. With the support of the Jerome L Green Foundation, MSHP started the “Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative” to reduce teenage pregnancy and improve access and utilization of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services,

Methods: We proactively identified youth at risk for pregnancy through screening of enrolled students in 55 high schools. Six outreach representatives (ORs) brought youth who screened at risk for pregnancy to the clinic for SRH services and also routinely followed all sexually active youth cared for by MSHP. On average, they have supported 3,000 boys and girls annually and facilitated individualized on-demand access to SRH services.

Results: In the last three years, the ORs identified 888 sexually active young women not utilizing a reliable birth control method (RBCM) on the screens. Their intervention, combined with provider counseling, has converted 59.2% of these young women to a RBCM method. We have increased the proportion of all sexually active girls on a RBCM from 47.4% in the school year 2016-2017 to 64.6% in the school year 2018-2019.

Conclusion: Proactive screening combined with on-demand SRH services and follow up was successful in providing RBCM to a majority of at-risk girls. This possibly prevented unintended pregnancy. Continuing research is needed to identify reasons why some sexually active girls decline the offer of reliable birth control.

Background: The Family Planning Benefit Program (FPBP) is a public health insurance program for New Yorkers not on Medicaid who need family planning services. FPBP is intended to increase access to confidential family planning services and to enable teens and adults of childbearing age to support reproductive health care (RHC) access.

Method: Montefiore School Health Program (MSHP) initiated enrollment into the FPBP program in 2018-19 school year. MSHP identified about 2100 eligible youth for FPBP (uninsured or commercial insurance). Outreach representatives (ORs) from the school-based health centers enrolled about 838 (40%) youth.

Results: By the end of the 2018-19 school year, 237 applications were approved; 403 were pending; 110 already had Medicaid and about 10% were denied. Of the approved 237, about 191 (81%) had completed an average of four RHC visits in the school year.

Conclusion: Lack of access to confidential family planning services is a significant hurdle for youth seeking reproductive health care control and can often result in unintended and unhealthy pregnancies and other sexual health related conditions. FPBP can be an effective youth-centered strategy for NYS school-based health centers to support increased access and utilization of confidential reproductive health services among sexually experienced students. Data has demonstrated that youth that receive timely family planning services are better equipped to engage in healthy sexual health decisions and behaviors as they transition into adulthood.