ADVOCATES FOR YOUTH

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The South Carolina Emergency Contraception Initiative

A Project of New Morning Foundation in Partnership with Advocates for Youth

Mission

The goal of the South Carolina Emergency Contraception Initiative is to increase awareness of, demand for, and access to emergency contraception (EC) among young women ages 16 to 24 in Charleston, Columbia, Greenville, and Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Strategies

The Initiative’s three strategies include:

• conducting direct outreach to youth;
• conducting direct outreach and training to youth-serving professionals, and
• providing in-depth technical assistance and developing key partnerships with local community-based organizations and professional associations.

Strategy #1: Direct, Statewide Outreach to Youth

The Initiative promotes the ability of young women to prevent unintended pregnancy by increasing awareness of and demand for emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) by:

• Implementing a large-scale public education campaign, including an EC-focused website, and other appropriate printed pieces for young adults
• Collaborating with Princeton University and the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals to establish a broad network of ECP providers registered with the national EC hotline and website (1-888-Not-2-Late and www.not-2-late.com), and
• Convening educational workshops and leadership trainings for a cadre of youth activists who in turn will help carry the ECP message to their peers.

Strategy #2: Direct, Statewide Outreach to Youth-Serving Professionals

The Initiative increases access to emergency contraception for young women by:

• Creating a statewide database of educators, health care providers, and other youth-serving professionals, to be used for mailings and establishing an ECP listserv
• Implementing a provider education campaign, including a website, educational materials, an informational kit with a DVD, and other appropriate printed pieces for health care providers
• Providing outreach and training for key stakeholders, including health care providers, pharmacists, educators, and youth-serving professionals.
• Advocating for policy and practice shifts in health care delivery systems that encourage:
  1. pediatricians, OB-GYNs and adolescent health care providers routinely to provide young women with accurate information and advance provision of EC
  2. family planning clinics to ensure youth friendly services, and
  3. sexual assault centers and hospital emergency rooms to offer ECP as a standard of care.

Strategy #3: In-depth Technical Assistance and Development of Key Partnerships

The Initiative provides in-depth technical assistance and training targeted to specific professional sectors, local communities, and college campuses to increase awareness of and access to ECPs. Activities include:

• Creating partnerships with key professional associations to educate their membership about EC through conferences, resource materials, and listservs
• Providing seed grants to communities and college organizations for local campaigns, and
• Offering technical assistance, resources, trainings, and networking opportunities to seed grant recipients.

Resources

• www.morningafterinfo.org—a comprehensive Web site for information on emergency birth control pills and resources for youth, parents, professionals and the media in South Carolina.

• Publications—The South Carolina EC Initiative offers fact sheets, issue briefs, lesson plans, and teen pamphlets related to EC.

For more information, please contact Lottie McClorin, Project Manager, South Carolina EC Initiative at: lottie@advocatesforyouth.org or (803) 771-0104.