Context
When caring for an adolescent client, providers of contraceptive services must consider
whether and how to encourage parent/guardian–child communication about the adolescent’s
reproductive health. The objective of this systematic review was to summarize the
evidence on the effectiveness of programs designed to increase parent–child communication
about reproductive health. The review was used to inform national recommendations
on quality family planning services. Data analysis occurred from mid-2011 through
2012.
Evidence acquisition
Several electronic bibliographic databases were used to identify relevant articles,
including PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Popline, published from January 1985 through
February 2011.
Evidence synthesis
Sixteen articles met the inclusion criteria: all studies examined the impact on at
least one medium- or short-term outcome, and two studies assessed the impact on teen
pregnancy. One study examined the impact of a program conducted in a clinic setting;
the remainder examined the impact of programs in community settings. All studies showed
a positive impact on at least one short-term outcome, and 12 of 16 studies showed
an increase in parent–child communication about reproductive health. Four of seven
studies found an impact on sexual risk behavior.
Conclusions
Most programs increased parent–child communication, and several resulted in reduced
sexual risk behavior of adolescents. This suggests that delivering a clinic-based
program that effectively helps parents/guardians talk to their adolescent child(ren)
about reproductive health, or referring parents/guardians to an evidence-based program
in the community, may be beneficial. However, further rigorous research on delivery
of these programs in clinical settings is needed.
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