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Adolescents' willingness to use a school-based clinic in view of expressed health concerns
May 1987
ABSTRACTS
ADOLESCENTS' WILLINGNESS TO USE A SCHOOL-BASED CLINIC IN ",EW OF EXPRESSED HEALTH CONCERNS. Suzanne Riggs. M.D. and TLna Cheng. M.D. Dept. of Pediatrics, Drown Univ. Program I" Medicine, and Rhode Island Hospital. Providence, Rhode Island. A health needs assessment qoestLo""aLre was developed to facilitdte implementation of a confidential. comprehensive school-based clinic. Students were also asked about their wllllngness to use such a clinic for certain health and emotional problems. to validate the hypothesis that a school-based health center would improve access to and use of health care by teenagers. 600 students in grades g through 12 completed anonymous self-administered questionnaires. Mean age of respondents was 15.8 years; 52% were female; 23% were on welfare. 28% Of respondents reported "feeling depressed" lately: 12% reported having attempted suicide. Of 56% who had experienced intercourse at least once. only 33% had ever used birth control. 21% smoked cigarettes. 27% used marijuana, 24% used other drugs and 38% used alcohol. Most adolescents expressed a willingness to utilize a school clinic for help with unmet health needs: 62% for emotional concerns; 47% for sexuality concerns and 67% for health information about substance use. Students who reported feeling depressed were significantly (p
DISRUPTION OF THE MICROl3IOLOGIC MILIEU IN ADOLBSCENT FEMALES WITH CERVICAL INFLfiMMATION. narbora Moscicki, M&r Marilyn Ohm-Smith, N.R.8 Nancy Bliwiue, Ph.D.8 M-A Shafer, L.D.; Julius Schachter, M.D. university Of California, Ph.D.; Richard Sweet, San Ftancie:o, San Prancisco, California. One of the intrinsio protective mechanisms of the cervix ineludes an ecologically functional microbiologic milieu (MM). Disruption in this milieu may promote initial inflammatory changes which decrease host defense to pathogenic agents. This may result in aither ascendina infections or even cervxcal dvsolasia. We examined the diffeiences in cervical microbiology’in women with and without cervical inflammation fCI) (findings of: >I0 PMNslhpf on endocervical gram stain or mucupus or friability or erythema/ edema of ectopy). 64 sexually active females lage 13-191 were chosen randomly. The presence of CI was determined after entry y. Subjects were cultured for m (CT), m, ureaplasma, herpes simplex virus, yeast and extensive aerobic an-d anaerobic isolates. Using X2 analysis. ml~ w, anaerobic gram negative rods and CT IgG Were positive1 associated with the presence of CI Using stepwise discriminate (p
to
307
ADOLESCENT EGOCENTRISM AND RISK PERCEPTION IN YOUNG ADOLESCENIS. 111;.. Laurence Cohn, Ph.D., Nancy Adler. Ph.&. Charles [min. Jr.. M.D., Susan Kegeles, Ph.D., Susan Millstein, Ph.Lh. and George Stone, Ph.D. Uepartmants of Pediatrics and Psychiatry. University of California, San Francisco Developmental theory Suggests that the emergence of adolescent egocentrism is accompanied by a sense of invulnerability to harm. This study was designed to investigate the relationship between egocentrism and perceived risk; an inverse relationship was hypothesized. Subjects were 577 middle school students aged lo-14 (mean=l3]: 51.5% were male. The sample was Zfi? white, 30% black, 21% asian. 10% hispanic. and 13% other. Students completed two n~easuresof adolescent egocentrism (Imaginary Audience Scale ([AS) S Adolescent Egocentrism Scale (AESI), questionnaires regarding perceptions of risk (likelihood Of exPerie"Ci"g negative effects for 10 risk behaviors soch as Sexual activity R substance use), and experience with these behaviors. Mean sumnary scores were derived for all subjects on perceptions of risk and experience with behaviors. RESULTS: For females, high self-consciousness (LAS) was associated with perceptions of low risk, while high selfreflection (AES) was related to perceptions of high risk. The relalionship of egocentrism to risk perception in females remained significant when grade level and experience were take" into account. Males reported significantly greater experience with the behaviors (p(.OOl) and significantly lower perceptions of risk (p<.OOl) than females. Experience with the behaviors was associated with lowered perceptions of risk for both males and females (P'S(.OOl). Sixth graders had less experience (p's(.OOl) and higher risk perceptions (p's<.Ol) than both 7th and Eth graders. The results suggest that egocentrism may be relevant primarily in eramining risk-taking behavior in adolescent girls. PeQQY DOlCi”i,
ABSTRACTS
ADOLESCENTS' WILLINGNESS TO USE A SCHOOL-BASED CLINIC IN ",EW OF EXPRESSED HEALTH CONCERNS. Suzanne Riggs. M.D. and TLna Cheng. M.D. Dept. of Pediatrics, Drown Univ. Program I" Medicine, and Rhode Island Hospital. Providence, Rhode Island. A health needs assessment qoestLo""aLre was developed to facilitdte implementation of a confidential. comprehensive school-based clinic. Students were also asked about their wllllngness to use such a clinic for certain health and emotional problems. to validate the hypothesis that a school-based health center would improve access to and use of health care by teenagers. 600 students in grades g through 12 completed anonymous self-administered questionnaires. Mean age of respondents was 15.8 years; 52% were female; 23% were on welfare. 28% Of respondents reported "feeling depressed" lately: 12% reported having attempted suicide. Of 56% who had experienced intercourse at least once. only 33% had ever used birth control. 21% smoked cigarettes. 27% used marijuana, 24% used other drugs and 38% used alcohol. Most adolescents expressed a willingness to utilize a school clinic for help with unmet health needs: 62% for emotional concerns; 47% for sexuality concerns and 67% for health information about substance use. Students who reported feeling depressed were significantly (p
DISRUPTION OF THE MICROl3IOLOGIC MILIEU IN ADOLBSCENT FEMALES WITH CERVICAL INFLfiMMATION. narbora Moscicki, M&r Marilyn Ohm-Smith, N.R.8 Nancy Bliwiue, Ph.D.8 M-A Shafer, L.D.; Julius Schachter, M.D. university Of California, Ph.D.; Richard Sweet, San Ftancie:o, San Prancisco, California. One of the intrinsio protective mechanisms of the cervix ineludes an ecologically functional microbiologic milieu (MM). Disruption in this milieu may promote initial inflammatory changes which decrease host defense to pathogenic agents. This may result in aither ascendina infections or even cervxcal dvsolasia. We examined the diffeiences in cervical microbiology’in women with and without cervical inflammation fCI) (findings of: >I0 PMNslhpf on endocervical gram stain or mucupus or friability or erythema/ edema of ectopy). 64 sexually active females lage 13-191 were chosen randomly. The presence of CI was determined after entry y. Subjects were cultured for m (CT), m, ureaplasma, herpes simplex virus, yeast and extensive aerobic an-d anaerobic isolates. Using X2 analysis. ml~ w, anaerobic gram negative rods and CT IgG Were positive1 associated with the presence of CI Using stepwise discriminate (p
to
307
ADOLESCENT EGOCENTRISM AND RISK PERCEPTION IN YOUNG ADOLESCENIS. 111;.. Laurence Cohn, Ph.D., Nancy Adler. Ph.&. Charles [min. Jr.. M.D., Susan Kegeles, Ph.D., Susan Millstein, Ph.Lh. and George Stone, Ph.D. Uepartmants of Pediatrics and Psychiatry. University of California, San Francisco Developmental theory Suggests that the emergence of adolescent egocentrism is accompanied by a sense of invulnerability to harm. This study was designed to investigate the relationship between egocentrism and perceived risk; an inverse relationship was hypothesized. Subjects were 577 middle school students aged lo-14 (mean=l3]: 51.5% were male. The sample was Zfi? white, 30% black, 21% asian. 10% hispanic. and 13% other. Students completed two n~easuresof adolescent egocentrism (Imaginary Audience Scale ([AS) S Adolescent Egocentrism Scale (AESI), questionnaires regarding perceptions of risk (likelihood Of exPerie"Ci"g negative effects for 10 risk behaviors soch as Sexual activity R substance use), and experience with these behaviors. Mean sumnary scores were derived for all subjects on perceptions of risk and experience with behaviors. RESULTS: For females, high self-consciousness (LAS) was associated with perceptions of low risk, while high selfreflection (AES) was related to perceptions of high risk. The relalionship of egocentrism to risk perception in females remained significant when grade level and experience were take" into account. Males reported significantly greater experience with the behaviors (p(.OOl) and significantly lower perceptions of risk (p<.OOl) than females. Experience with the behaviors was associated with lowered perceptions of risk for both males and females (P'S(.OOl). Sixth graders had less experience (p's(.OOl) and higher risk perceptions (p's<.Ol) than both 7th and Eth graders. The results suggest that egocentrism may be relevant primarily in eramining risk-taking behavior in adolescent girls. PeQQY DOlCi”i,