This intervention utilizes an evidenced based sexual health education program combined with trauma informed principles to provide a trauma informed sexual health education program to youth in foster care. Youth in foster care experience negative outcomes related to sexual health at a higher rate than youth not in foster care (Ramseyer Winter, et al; 2016), including higher rates of teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, as well as higher rates of transactional sexual encounters, sexual initiation at a younger age, and engaging in casual sex with multiple partners (Harmon-Darrow, et al; 2020). By providing sexual health education that addresses and takes into account prior experiences of trauma, the intervention seeks to building resilience by assisting youth in processing previous trauma, and increasing strengths and protective factors.
The program will provide sexual health education provided by certified sexual health educators who have received trauma informed training. Core curriculum will be amended to include trauma informed material. The program will provide clinical supports through individual clinicians assigned to program participants to help address individual trauma triggers and process personal and individual experiences. Youth in foster care often experience placement and relational instability, lack of attachment and connection to caregivers, and inconsistent service provision (Albertson, et al; 2020) (Robertson, 2013) Foster parents will also engage in a supportive parallel program designed to increase communication, enhance personal connection and supports, and encourage youth to feel empowered regarding their intimate relationships with others.
References:
- Albertson, K., Crouch, J. M., Udell, W., Schimmel‐Bristow, A., Serrano, J., & Ahrens, K. R. (2020). Caregiver‐endorsed strategies to improving sexual health outcomes among foster youth. Child & Family Social Work, 25(3), 557-567. https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12726
- Harmon-Darrow, C., Burruss, K., & Finigan-Carr, N. (2020). “We are kind of their parents”: Child welfare workers’ perspective on sexuality education for foster youth. Children and Youth Services Review, 108, 104565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104565
- Ramseyer Winter, V., Brandon-Friedman, R. A., & Ely, G. E. (2016). Sexual health behaviors and outcomes among current and former foster youth: A review of the literature. Children and Youth Services Review, 64, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.02.023
- Robertson, R. D. (2013). The invisibility of adolescent sexual development in foster care: Seriously addressing sexually transmitted infections and access to services. Children and Youth Services Review, 35(3), 493-504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2012.12.009
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