The student comes in for a pregnancy test - the second time she's asked for one in matter of weeks.
She's 15. She lives with her boyfriend. He wants kids - he won't use protection. She loves him, she says. But she doesn't want to get pregnant. She knows how much harder it would be for her to finish high school.
At many schools, she would have gotten little more than some advice from a school nurse. But here at Anacostia High School in Washington, D.C., she gets a dose of midwife Lorel Patchen.
Patchen talks her through a range of birth control methods. There's a shot you take every few months, an IUD, or a small implant that goes into your arm, which can prevent pregnancy for years. And, of course there are birth control pills. The student opts for pills, and leaves Patchen's office with a one-month supply with a standing order for refills through the school clinic.
"My day at the school health center is the highlight of my week," Patchen says. "I see young people be brave every single day that I show up there. And I see people willing to figure out how to do really hard things. What's better than that?".
She wants more - more days in the school clinic, more schools in the program, more staff - to meet the need she sees every day she's there. She thinks this is one of the few interventions that could have a direct impact on bringing down the high rate of teen pregnancy for these young women in the District.
To read more of Selena Simmons-Duffin's article, please click here.
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