Expanding Health Services for School District of Philadelphia High School Students

topic area

Access to Care

recipients

AccessMatters, The School District of Philadelphia

about

Health Resource Centers (HRCs) provide sexual and reproductive health education, confidential counseling, condom distribution, pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) screenings, and referrals to social services for adolescents. In Philadelphia, HRCs are located in a number of School District of Philadelphia (SDP) high schools and operate through a longstanding partnership with AccessMatters. Even with the availability of these services, there remains a gap in adolescent sexual and reproductive health knowledge, behaviors, and service access According to Youth Risk Behavioral Survey (YRBS) data, approximately 30% of SDP high school students are sexually active; however, only 20% used any type of contraceptive, and only 11% have had an STI test.

With support from AHE and other funders, AccessMatters, SDP, and the Philadelphia Department of Health have developed the Health Resource Centers+ (HRC+) model which expands the center’s core services to include increased services to include family planning services and behavioral health counseling such as contraceptive dispensing and behavioral health screening. These expanded services are currently being offered at Bartram High School and the Philadelphia High School for Girls. Through these interactions with sexual health counselors, nurse practitioners, and behavioral health counselors, adolescents are learning about and gaining confidence in accessing healthcare in a safe and trusted environment — this knowledge and experience are critically important to their future wellness.

looking ahead

The HRC+ Pilot Project represents a unique collaboration among multiple entities and is part of the
SDP’s strategy to address health-related barriers to student learning and academic success, which
includes adolescent access to healthcare If successful, this project can provide a roadmap for additional agencies to offer these expanded services for students to improve.

additional partners

Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Family Practice and Counseling Network (FPCN), Metis Associates