1. Addressing Educational Barriers in Teenage Mothers: A Family Nurturing Program Chloe Clark Compressed Nursing - Trent University - Peterborough, ON Although the teenage birth rate in Canada has decreased from 35.7 to 13.6 during the last two decades, there is still a current issue regarding the completion of education for these young mothers (Statistics Canada, 2008). Statistics Canada (2008) shows a profound positive correlation between the timing of motherhood and the likelihood of finishing high-school or post-secondary school. Their current research now focuses largely on the relation between education and the success of teenage mothers because of the strong correlation between education and socioeconomic status. Social determinants of health including income, shelter and food security, and social support systems are all connected to the level of education a person has. Canadian women who postpone motherhood earn a minimum for 6% more than those who entered motherhood at a younger age (Statistics Canada, 2008). Due to the health inequities surrounding this population, it is clear that action is needed in order to promote the health of teen mothers regarding their completion of school. Primary health care nurses can advocate for the existence of programs set out to engage teen mothers in the completion and continuation of their education. Keleher, Parker, Abdulwadud, & Francis (2009) believe that primary health care shows better quality of life, adherence, and better satisfaction with nurse-led care as well as more use of community resources. Together, we can make a positive change. BACKGROUND : Create a program geared towards the primary health care principles of health promotion and increasing accessibility to teen mothers regarding the completion of high-school and/or post-secondary school (Canadian Nurses Association, 2005). The program would be open to young women are at risk of not completing school do to being pregnant or having a young child. There would be a strong emphasis on continued education and its long-term benefits. This program would be modeled after the McComb Nurturing Center in Mississippi (McComb School District, 2015). It would include a daycare with a registered nurse on staff, a family nurturing course involving education related to child and family development, provide flexible hours and lesson plans geared towards teens with young children, education related to pre-natal and post-natal health, and would incorporate group therapy sessions with successful teen mothers as volunteers allowing students to create strong support networks. The program would be approached with a “step-forward” attitude addressing any negative connotations related to teen pregnancy. STRATEGY: This type of program has proved to be successful in other areas of North America. However, one of the major barriers present is the need for proper funding for the program. Applications for grants and other government funding would be essential for the success of this program. Secondly, another barrier to the success of this program would be a lack of family support for the mothers. As we have mentioned, teen parents are likely to have young parents who managed with similar health inequities (Statistics Canada, 2008). This may create a negative view of the proposed program which would lead to a lack of adherence ending in the incompletion of the program. Without a positive response from teen mothers, there would be a lack of drive to complete the program and the goal of having more teen mothers complete their high-school education would not be met. To overcome this barrier, the agenda of the program must fit the agenda of the mothers and their families. Our role is to find and understand what the needs of this population are and then strive to meet them. Evidence shows that increased education leads to better health and socio-economical outcomes (Aslam and Kingdon, 2012). This can be used to facilitate the drive towards completing their education. Facilitators to this program include successful teen mother volunteers as well as a registered nurse on staff. These women act as role models for the teens and provide a support network that may not be present in the teen’s lives. The registered nurse would also be available to address any health concerns that the mothers may have regarding them or their child. The program also provides a safe place for mothers and their children to go. This increases peace of mind for the mothers and allows them to focus more on their studies. BARRIERS & FACILITATORS: EVALUATION OF STRATEGY: To assess the effectiveness of the family nurturing program on increasing mother and child outcomes with continued education, a number of factors will be monitored. To begin, baseline statistics related to education level will be compared to average income, level of food/shelter security, and level of emotional and spiritual support. Current statistics are needed within this population because the most recent statistics are outdated from 2008. During the program we will monitor the changes within these determinants of health. If the program is successful, the teen mothers will have finished or be on a plan to finishing their high school diploma, their average income or expected income will have increased, they will have better food/shelter security, and an improved support system. The children will be assessed by comparing their developmental status to that of children of non-teen mothers. An interview will be conducted prior to and after graduation to determine the teen’s level of satisfaction with the program. This can be used to determine any areas of improvement for the program and allow us to make any necessary changes. This can then be used to attain more funding for the program. Barlow et. al. (2011) stated that parent programs for teen mothers are related to better parent-child interactions. If our goals are maintained and achieved, the outcome of teen mothers and their children will better over the next decade. References: Aslam, M., & Kingdon, G. G. (2012). Parental education and child health—understanding the pathways of impact in Pakistan. World Development, 40(10), 2014-2032. Barlow, J., Smailagic, N., Bennett, C., Huband, N., Jones, H., & Coren, E. (2011). Individual and group based parenting programmes for improving psychosocial outcomes for teenage parents and their children (Review).Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 3, 1-97. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4164375/pdf/emss-57244.pdfhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4164375/pdf/emss-57244.pdf Canadian Nurses Association. (2005). Primary Health Care: a Summary of the Issues. CNA Backgrounder. Retrieved from http://www.cna-aiic.ca/~/media/cna/page-content/pdf-en/bg7_primary_health_care_e.pdf?la=en Keleher, H., Parker, R., Abdulwadud, O., & Francis, K. (2009). Systematic review of the effectiveness of primary care nursing. International journal of nursing practice, 15(1), 16-24. McComb School District. (2015). Family Nurturing Center. Retrieved from http://www.mccomb.k12.ms.us/P/Schools/KE/FNC.aspx Statistics Canada. (2008). Life After Teenage Motherhood. Perspectives on Labour and Income. Retrieved from http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/access_acces/alternative_alternatif.action?l=eng&loc=/pub/75-001-x/75-001-x2008105-eng.pdf PURPOSE: The purpose of this program is to better the outcomes of teen mothers and their children by reducing barriers related to social determinants of health. As Statistics Canada (2008) states, children of teenage mothers are more likely to have children of their own at a young age creating a cycle of generations that are at a socioeconomic disadvantage. We can break the generational trend of teen parenthood increasing the well-being of teen mothers today with reducing the present health inequity. By increasing the amount of education these mothers attain, we can reduce the health inequities that are present within the population