Session: Sexual and Reproductive Health Among Youth Who Are Homeless (Society for Social Work and Research 24th Annual Conference - Reducing Racial and Economic Inequality)

This symposium addresses sexual and reproductive health among a particularly vulnerable population: youth who are homeless. Half of homeless female youth in the United States become pregnant during adolescence and 44% of homeless female 18-25 year old youth are either currently pregnant or parenting. This staggering rate of pregnancy is the combined result of high-risk behaviors and being underserved by healthcare systems and school-based prevention. Compared to their non-homeless peers, adolescents who are homeless present with increased instances of engaging in high risk behavior, including initiating sexual intercourse at an earlier age, being more likely to have multiple sexual partners, having lower rates of consistent condom or other contraception use, engaging in sex while intoxicated, and engaging in survival sex (including trading sex for shelter, money, or drugs). The prevalence of homeless youth engaging in survival sex exceeds 20% and an estimated 35% of homeless youth have been sexually victimized. A recent, comprehensive, phenomenological study found that homeless youth feel discussion of contraception is "like a different language" and are largely unaware of where and how to access contraception. Yet, considering the significant challenges faced by youth who are both parenting and homeless, it is critical to support youth in addressing their sexual and reproductive health needs in a sensitive, trauma-informed manner.

This symposium presents a series of complementary papers focused on understanding homeless youths' sexual and reproductive health needs and how they can be addressed by social worker and allied health professionals. We will begin with results of a comprehensive review of the literature on factors affecting how homeless youth access and select birth control at the individual, interpersonal, and healthcare system levels to frame the symposium. Next, we will present the results of two studies on different aspects of social networks of homeless youth: one on sexual health communication, HIV testing, and condom use within networks of homeless youth, and another on pregnancy attitudes within social networks of homeless youth. We will conclude with a participatory action PhotoVoice project sharing experiences of a holistic sexual health intervention for homeless young women. After leaving this presentation, participants will have up-to-date knowledge of current approaches to both understanding sexual and reproductive health among homeless youth and how to intervene in a sensitive, trauma-informed manner.