Development of a peer-based intervention educating teenagers about long-acting reversible contraception

Authors: PATEL, POOJA - Baylor College Of Medicine; OLVERA, ARIANA - Baylor College Of Medicine; RAPHAEL, MEGHNA - Baylor College Of Medicine; ABACAN, ALLYSSA - Baylor College Of Medicine; Thompson, Deborah - Debbe; SMITH, PEGGY - Baylor College Of Medicine

Submitted to: Journal of Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/27/2023
Publication Date: 4/14/2023
Citation: Patel, P.R., Olvera, A., Raphael, M., Abacan, A., Thompson, D.J., Smith, P.B. 2023. Development of a peer-based intervention educating teenagers about long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). Journal of Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpag.2023.03.008.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpag.2023.03.008

Interpretive Summary: Teen pregnancies remain a considerable national health issue in the U.S. Of the birth control methods available to prevent teen pregnancies, the most reliable is long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) use. Unfortunately, few sexually active teenagers use LARC methods, largely due to lack of awareness or misinformation. This article describes the development of a novel peer-based intervention, appropriately named "Get It?" that aims to increase awareness of and self-efficacy to use LARC devices among teenagers. By sharing this research, we aim to facilitate the development and adoption of similar interventions by other healthcare systems to support their efforts to reduce teen pregnancies.

Technical Abstract: Despite a decrease in teenage pregnancy rates in the U.S. in the past decades, teen pregnancy continues to be a considerable health issue. In this paper, we outline the development of our novel peer-based intervention, appropriately named Get It?, that aims to increase awareness of and self-efficacy to use long-active reversible contraceptives (LARCs) among teenagers. Peer narrative videos were created from audio-recording semi-structured, one-on-one interviews with teenage LARC users. Focus groups of young women 19 years old and younger were conducted to choose the most audience-appropriate videos to be included in the final intervention. Using a thematic content analysis approach, transcripts of the audio-recorded focus groups were reviewed and manually coded. The final layout of Get It? included 4 videos that were chosen by participants of the focus groups, as well as supplemental activities that included a basic description of the LARC devices, the ability to anonymously post personal stories about LARC that can be shared with others, and the opportunity to email the primary investigator questions about LARC. Thematic analysis of the focus group discussions revealed when it came to narrative videos, participants desired: (1) an authentic narrator, (2) more information on the narrator, (3) narrators displaying ample emotions. Peer narratives play a vital role in influencing a teenager's perspective on their health status, therefore understanding what constitutes reliable narration from an online format was critical in the development of a peer-based electronic intervention that informs teenagers of the most effective contraceptive available to them.