Who We Are

1. Strengthening State Health and Education Agency Partnerships to Prevent HIV, STD, and Pregnancy Among School-aged Youth: The National Stakeholders Collaborative Who We Are The National Stakeholders Collaborative (NSC) is a partnership between four national organizations including the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP), the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD), the National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD), and the Society of State Directors of Health, Physical Education & Recreation (Society). The NSC operates under a Memorandum of Agreement and receives funding through Cooperative Agreements with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Adolescent and School Health (CDC-DASH). Our Mission Why integration and collaboration across health and education? Where We’ve Been Minority Communities are Disproportionately Impacted The NSC develops state-level, inter-agency partnerships to improve adolescent reproductive and sexual health programs through shared visions and joint strategies. These dynamic partnerships, involving departments of health and education officials, create and implement effective programs and policies to prevent HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and unintended pregnancies among school-aged youth. This table illustrates the link between disparities, health, and education. Good health is necessary for academic success, as healthy children are better equipped to learn. The relationship between health disparities and inequities in education is illustrated by the common factors and interrelated outcomes expressed in the diagram above. The intersection of shared indirect contributing factors (highlighted in yellow) lay the groundwork for both health and educational disparities. These indirect contributing factors, including access and quality of services, must be addressed in order to reduce disparities and improve outcomes, in both the health and education arenas. Reduction of disparities needs to be emphasized as a key performance goal; through addressing linguistic challenges and modifying service delivery, providers can address community and individual level determinants and improve health and educational outcomes for youth. • The Current State of Adolescent Sexual Health in America • More new HIV infections have occurred among youth 13–29 years old than among any other age group. 1 • Nearly half of new STD infections occur in young people ages 15-24, although they represent only one-fourth of the sexually active population. 2 One in four teenage girls has an STD. 3 • In 2007, the U.S. teen birth rate increased for the second year in a row, after having risen for the first time in 15 years in 2006. Teen moms gave birth to more than 445,000 babies in 2007. 4 • In 2009, almost twenty-one percent (20.9) of 12th grade students in U.S. high schools have had four or more sex partners, and 45 percent of sexually active 12th grade students did not use a condom the last time they had sex. 5 • Sources: • 1 http://www.kff.org/womenshealth/upload/3040_04.pdf. 4 http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_12.pdf • 2 http://www.kff.org/womenshealth/upload/3040_04.pdf5 http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/ss/ss5905.pdf • 3 http://www.cdc.gov/stdconference/2008/media/release-11march2008.pdf Our Model Our Process: The NSC convenes state teams of public health and education officials through National Stakeholders Meetings (NSMs) – which are two to three day meetings focused on team building, skills building, and action planning. Since its creation in 2003, the NSC has been a uniquely resilient force and a focused resource for 33 states. • The Value of Collaboration • Collaboration and Integration across HIV, STD, and Teen Pregnancy Prevention… • Promotes sharing of knowledge among health and education agencies • Provides consistent messages to young people • Reduces programmatic gaps • Uses resources effectively • Increases potential effectiveness • Elevates importance of the issue • Addresses key issues around disparities Risk and Protective Factors for HIV, STD, and Teen Pregnancy Evaluation Findings: 2003-2007 • Conducted and analyzed by David Napp of Practical Applications of Public Health • (82% Response Rate, including representatives from all 29 states) NSM Teams were successful in… • Developing trusting relationships * • Prioritizing collaboration as a strategy to address HIV, STD, and pregnancy prevention* • Sharing data across agencies and programs* • Developing an SEA/SHA state plan to address HIV, STD, and pregnancy prevention* • Reconciling different philosophies and values across agencies and programs, such as abstinence versus comprehensive sexuality education* • Developing a unifying vision for how to address HIV, STD, and pregnancy prevention* • Improving communication patterns across agencies and programs* *statistically significant p < 0.01, two tailed test • Outcomes: • The NSC provides teambuilding, skill-building, and ongoing support, enabling state teams to collaborate effectively to: • secure funding • prepare and implement inter-agency strategic plans • engage youth • build, create, and share resources • revise and improve programs • develop and implement policies • integrate, assemble, and analyze data • design and deliver professional development, and • launch joint initiatives Lissa Pressfield, MHS Program Manager, Adolescent Health Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs(AMCHP) lpressfield@amchp.org Sandra Serna Smith, MPH Program Manager National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD) ssernasmith@ncsddc.org Gary A. Jenkins, MSW Manager, Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities National Alliance of State & Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD) gjenkins@nastad.org Kyle M. Lafferty, MPH, MST HIV Program Director Society of State Directors of Health, Physical Education & Recreation (SSDHPER) klafferty@thesociety.org This poster is supported by CDC Cooperative Agreement Numbers U58/DP000387-05, U58/DP000410-05, 5U58DP000416-05 & U62PS001782-03. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the NSC and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For Further Information: