It’s no secret to parents and educators that peer pressure is high on the list of concerns for today’s teenagers. Children are increasingly being presented with a barrage of negative influences. Teens are maturing faster. Sexual activity is occurring at younger ages. Reinforcing positive behavior among teens is a growing challenge.

A recent survey of Lucas County high school students reveals that nearly four out of 10 have had sexual intercourse. In addition, 9 percent have had sex before the age of 13. One in four Lucas County teenage girls will give birth by the time she is 20 years old.

An innovative program developed by St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center Pediatric Services is on the forefront of responding to this disturbing trend. Positive Choices promotes abstinence. The goal is clear — reduce sexual activity, transmitted diseases, pregnancy and births among teenagers living in Northwest Ohio.

Based on more than 15 years of experience in teen pregnancy prevention for high-risk youth, Positive Choices provides adolescents with honest information and practical skills. According to coordinator Kathy Latta, the program educates teens on the social, psychological and physical health advantages of abstaining from sexual activity until marriage. The message is simple — abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-of-wedlock pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.

Positive Choices provides young people with practical information and skills on how they can reject sexual advances. The impact of alcohol and drug use on a teen’s vulnerability to sexual advances is also addressed. This character building is a key factor in understanding the courage and self-discipline they need to maintain their new positive lifestyle.

The Positive Choices program involves in-class and after-school programming in a variety of settings for youth 9 through 17 years old. Educational sessions and activities are presented by trained adult and peer educators. The program includes ongoing support from peer mentors and parents as teens integrate new skills into their lives. “We show the youth positive things they can do with their free time,” says Ms. Latta. “Our activities range from sponsoring art fairs to collecting household goods for migrant farm worker families.”

Surveys conducted before and after instruction clearly demonstrate a positive change in participants’ thinking about having sex before marriage. “Since going through Positive Choices, I have a whole different perspective about having sex before I get married,” says Brad, an eighth-grade student from Blessed Sacrament who went through the program. “They really made it fun and easy to learn about the things they taught us.”

In 2001, Positive Choices served over 2,800 adolescents and 1,500 parents. Services were provided in 24 schools, 20 community centers and in participants’ homes, with educational presentations based on a nationally recognized and federally approved curriculum, Choosing the Best and A.C. Green’s Game Plan. This year, according to Ted DeChristopher, program coordinator, Positive Choices will be expanding services to serve special needs children in addition to providing a mental health professional to personally address issues that come up in group sessions. There is no fee for Positive Choices programs.

For more information on Positive Choices and other programs offered by St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center and Mercy Children’s Hospital, log onto www.mercyweb.org or call Mercy HealthLink at 419-251-4000.

Positive Choices is funded by the Federal Health Resources and Services Administration/Maternal Child Health Bureau, Department of Health and Human Services Office of Adolescent Pregnancy Programs, Ohio Department of Health, Family Council of Lucas County Wellness Program, ONYX Weed and Seed Program, Stranahan Foundation, Medical College of Ohio and the Saint Vincent Mercy Medical Center Foundation.