Saturday, September 14, 2019
Prevention of teen pregnancy Essay
Explain the level of prevention with teen pregnancy (can choose your own level out of the three levels).            Teenage pregnancy has been a major problem not only in the developed world but also recently in the developing nations. In the US and Canada, due to the increased awareness amongst teenagers, the prevalence of teenage pregnancies is decreasing. However, in several developing nations, the incidence of teenage pregnancies is on the rise. In the year 1999, it was found that about 97 teenagers out of every 1000 between the ages of 15 to 19 years were pregnant and about 80 % of them were not desired. Before the age of 18 years, 80 % of the teenage girls have sex. The age of menarche has also dropped to 12 to 13 years (Weiss, 2000).            Teenage pregnancies may not be intended for social reasons but due to other including medical and psychological. The chances of the girl to have a miscarriage, abortion, stillborn baby, etc, are reasonable higher. These girls are usually the ones who belong to the lower socioeconomic groups and the chances of living in poverty are realistically higher. The financial burden on the woman would also increase, as she would now have to leave her studies and pick up some job in order to support her child. Children born from a teen mother are frequently underweight and are at a high risk of developing health problems. Due to a number of causes, it is always preferred that teenage pregnancies are prevented.            There are three different levels of prevention when it comes to teenage pregnancies. These include primary prevention, secondary prevention and tertiary prevention. Primary prevention includes measures to prevent pregnancies through physical or other methods. These include use of contraceptive pills, condoms, etc. This helps to reduce minimize the risk of getting pregnant. Secondary prevention includes checkups, scans, etc, to ensure that the girl does not get pregnant. This is usually followed if primary prevention is not enabled. Tertiary prevention of includes taking measures to prevent any further pregnancies after one has already occurred in the teenage girls. The best level of prevention would be primary prevention (Connelly & Inui, 2004).      How might this specific level of prevention be addressed in a community experiencing an increase in family violence.            There are several measures which need to be adopted for primary prevention of teenage pregnancies. These include health education, sex education, school and college based programs, health services, use of condoms, use of contraceptives (birth control pills), etc.            In the teen pregnancy prevention program several people belonging to the community should be involved including the teenagers, parents, teachers, legislatures, administrators, professionals, media, medical professionals, School authorities, etc. It is important that the entire community be involved in the program, as teenage pregnancy is a multi-faceted issue. People are advised to develop responsible health attitudes, behavior and practices regarding teenage pregnancy.  The program should be much more than just offering health services and counselling services.            The program should take place at several places including schools, colleges, health centers, public health centers, community discussions, etc. The targets of such programs should be more realistic and achievable. Both the boy and girl should actively take part in such programs. At all stages, it is very important that the family and the parents are involved. Besides, resources and materials such as condoms, birth control pills, education material, counselling services, etc, should be provided.            In the teenage pregnancy prevention program, multiple agencies should be involved. In the planning and implementation of the program, teenagers themselves should be involved. The parents should educate and create awareness in their children about sex and pregnancy during the childhood stage itself. Hence, involvement of the parents is also required. Mobile services would also help to create awareness in rural and far-flung areas. The trust should be in creating increased levels of confidence, self-esteem and decision-making amongst teenagers. Teenagers should also be educated about drug abuse and alcohol abuse. Drug abuse can affect judgment, which can lead to irresponsible sex behavior. Explain why a comprehensive health program should address all three levels of prevention.            Teenage pregnancy programs need to address all the levels of prevention, as focusing on one single level of prevention and ignoring others would create bias and negative attitudes of the community to those girls who have already become pregnant. As the rates of teenage pregnancy are reasonable high and a significant number of girls become pregnant during the teenage period, there are high chances that they would lead a miserable life. This may make it all that more difficult to enable the process of primary prevention. Several facilities such as health education, medical services for the mother and the child, housing, financial support, nursing homes, counselling, etc, need to be provided.  It is important that teenagers who become pregnant be given all the care and love during the pregnancy period and not be driven out of the house. Pregnant girls should also be given counselling services as they would not know much of the manner in which their healthcare needs have to be met. They should be specifically warned about drug abuse and smoking during this period. The focus should be on ensuring that the mother and child are healthy and do not suffer. During the pregnancy period, the young father should be supportive of the girl. The young mother should also be educated about the manner in which abuse and neglect need to be tackled. References: Connelly, M. T. & Inui, T. S. (2004). â€Å"Principles of Disease Prevention.†In: Braunwald, E., Fauci, A. S., Kasper, D. L., Hauser, S. L., Longo, D. L. and Jameson, J.L. (Eds) Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine, New York: McGraw-Hill. Huberman, B. (2005). â€Å"National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month (NTPPM) Planning Guidebook.†Retrieved on December 9, 2007, from Advocates of Youth Web site. Ontario’s Maternal, Newborn and Early Child Development Resource Centre and the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada (2007). â€Å"Update report on Teen pregnancy prevention.†Retrieved on December 9, 2007, from OMNECD Web site: SHPPS (2006). â€Å"Pregnancy Prevention.†Retrieved on December 9, 2007, from SHPPS Web site. Weiss, D. (2006). â€Å"Reducing Teenage Pregnancy.†Retrieved on December 9, 2007, from Planned Parenthood Web site: http://www.plannedparenthood.org/news-articles-press/politics-policy-issues/teen-pregnancy-sex-education/teenage-pregnancy-6240.htm
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