Teens have plenty to worry about. From social awkwardness and rising academic expectations to struggling for independence, yet, access to information on contraception shouldn’t be one of them. As a new initiative launched by the Detroit Health Department and Mayor’s Office, iDecide Detroit fills this gap by promoting confidential, teen-friendly and reproductive health services and supports.
To this end, iDecide Detroit is a network of teen-friendly reproductive health providers that offer teens and adults services like condoms, birth control, testing and treatment in an effort to protect a teen’s sexual health.While the national teen pregnancy stats appear to be on the decline.
urban areas and minorities – especially African-Americans – are not reflected in the national numbers, according to Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, director and health officer for the Detroit Health Department.”Unintended teen pregnancy is certainly a public health issue in the city of Detroit,”Khaldun says. “Although teen pregnancy rates overall have been declining across the country, in Michigan and in Detroit, there still exists a disparity between those various areas. We want to make sure that all teens across the city of Detroit have access to the services and knowledge that they need so that they can make the right choices for themselves when it comes to their sexual health and when they want to become a parent.
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That’s why we’re launching this initiative.”The iDecide Detroit initiative is collaborative in that it partners with 23 healthcare providers from all over the city. This means that even if a teen doesn’t have health insurance, they can still be providedthe services they need. The Detroit Health Department recently opened its first.
iDecide Teen Health Center at the Butzel Family Center at 7737 Kercheval in Detroit. To get the word out about the campaign, the Detroit Health Department and Teen HYPE are working in tandem to ensure the iDecide Detroit campaign is, at its core, youth-friendly and engaging.
Teen HYPE is a youth movement empowered to strengthen young people through evidence-based programs including health, safety, education and the arts. Detroit-based Teen HYPE youth are prominently featured in the iDecide marketing materials and website.
