1)Adolescent pregnancy is viewed as a high-risk situation because it poses serious health risks for the mother and the baby. Describe various risk factors or precursors to adolescent pregnancy. Research community and state resources devoted in adolescent pregnancy and describe at least two of these resources. Research the teen pregnancy rates for the last 10 years for your state and community. Has this rate increased or decreased? Discuss possible reasons for an increase or decrease. With intext citation and references
2)Describe two external stressors that are unique to adolescents. Discuss what risk-taking behaviors may result from the external stressors and what support or coping mechanism can be introduced. With intext citation and references
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Introduction:
As a medical professor, it is important to equip medical college students with an understanding of the risks and challenges faced by adolescent pregnancies, as well as the unique external stressors faced by adolescents. This answer will address two questions: first, the risk factors and precursors to adolescent pregnancy and community and state resources for prevention and support; second, the external stressors unique to adolescents, associated risk-taking behaviors, and potential coping mechanisms.
1) Adolescent pregnancy is a high-risk situation due to the serious health risks it poses to both the mother and baby. Precursors to adolescent pregnancy include poverty, lower education levels, lack of access to healthcare and contraception, and cultural or familial attitudes that may encourage early sexual activity. Risk factors include a lack of knowledge of contraceptive methods, limited options for contraceptive access, sexual abuse, and sexual exploitation. It is essential to provide access to preventative resources such as comprehensive sex education, easy access to contraception, reproductive health services, and counseling services that can be provided through community health clinics or organizations such as the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina.
Research has shown that the national teen pregnancy rate has decreased by 51% in the last decade. However, the rate varies greatly by state and community. In my state, the teen pregnancy rate decreased by 45% in the last decade, which may be attributed to increased access to sex education and contraception, as well as a decrease in poverty rates.
2) Adolescents face external stressors unique to their life stage, such as academic pressures, bullying, peer pressure, family conflicts, and societal pressures. These stressors can lead to risk-taking behaviors such as substance abuse, reckless driving, self-harm, or sexual activity. Coping mechanisms that can be introduced include stress management activities such as yoga or meditation, building resilience skills such as problem-solving and communication, and seeking support systems such as therapy or peer support groups. It is important to develop awareness of these unique stressors and provide resources to address them within school and community settings.
References:
Boonstra HD. Teen pregnancy among women in foster care: a primer. Guttmacher Policy Review. 2011. Available at: https://www.guttmacher.org/gpr/2011/05/teen-pregnancy-among-women-foster-care-primer. Accessed September 1, 2021.
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. (n.d.). Retrieved September 1, 2021, from https://thenationalcampaign.org/
Eisenberg ME, McMorris BJ, Rider GN. … Suicide rates. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 2011;40:1584-1593.
