Providers, parents and communication: the keys to healthy teens and reducing teen pregnancy rates.

Clinicians are overlooked and undervalued in the sexual health education equation for teens and their parents. As trusted health professionals, providers have a unique opportunity to educate entire families on sexual health issues using clear, medically accurate information that is developmentally appropriate and unbiased. Teen pregnancy rates in the United States are at an alltime low [1,2]. Despite this fact, American teens are much more likely to conceive during adolescence than peers in other developed nations [1–3]. The issues surrounding teen sexual behavior and unintended pregnancy are vast and complicated [4]. Leading the confusion are barriers to confidential contraceptive services — perceived or real — and decreased availability of comprehensive sexuality education in schools. Other contributing factors include the wide variety of sometimes conflicting belief systems in families and specific communities and the enduring impact of racism, poverty and inadequate education [3,5]. Further complicating these issues are the barrage of heightened sexbased messages in the media and unclear and inconsistent messages regarding sex and sexuality from adult role models. Age and background of the teen mother's partner, absence of long-term and realistic dreams and goals, peer pressure and youth ambivalence regarding teen pregnancy and/or parenthood round out this long list [4]. These factors, combined with lack of reliable and consistent health resources, confuse messages about sex to American teens. The result is poor health outcomes, despite the best intentions of clinicians, public health leaders, parents and community members. Providers have a significant role in helping eliminate some of these barriers through patient education and evidence-based care, ultimately impacting reduced teen pregnancy rates even further.