Adolescent pregnancy is identified as a high-risk situation that poses serious health risks for both the mother and her baby. It is important to be aware of the different risk factors and precursors that can lead to adolescent pregnancy. As nurses, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves and the community about these issues and provide access to resources that can help prevent adolescent pregnancy. According to research, adolescent pregnancy can be attributed to several risk factors and precursors. Some of the most common ones include lack of access to comprehensive sex education, low socioeconomic status, experience of abuse and neglect, substance abuse, and a lack of knowledge or access to contraceptive methods. In addition, adolescents who have experienced early sexual initiation, or who were not able to refuse unwanted sex, are more likely to engage in unprotected sex and become pregnant (Amoadu et al., 2022). These risk factors are prevalent in communities with low-income earners, and families lacking parental supervision to guide the adolescent sexually.
Communities and states in the US have devoted resources to help prevent adolescent pregnancy. The Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program (APPP) is one resource that provides grants to states and territories to support adolescent pregnancy prevention programs. The APPP’s goals include reducing teenage pregnancy rates, addressing disparities in teen birth rates, and improving adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Other state-based resources include federally funded programs like the Personal Responsibility Education Program, which supports programs focused on pregnancy prevention, and the Title X Family Planning Program. Title X provides dedicated funds for family planning and related reproductive health services for low-income or uninsured individuals, who may otherwise not have access to services of this nature (U.S. Department of Health &