A team of researchers in Chicago is developing a multimedia project to reduce the number of back-to-back pregnancies among teenagers, according to WTTW Chicago Tonight.
Pregnancies that occur within 18 months of another birth tend to exhibit additional complications, such as preterm birth or low birth weight. Teen mothers also various face barriers to raising children and completing their education, among other challenges.
"If someone gets pregnant within a year following a prior pregnancy, that subsequent pregnancy is at higher risk," Melissa Gilliam, MD, an adolescent obstetrician-gynecologist and founder of the Center for Interdisciplinary Inquiry and Innovation in Sexual and Reproductive Health at the University of Chicago, told WTTW Chicago Tonight.
Dr. Gilliam is leading the multimedia project in collaboration with researchers from Chicago-based Access Community Health Network and Resilient Games Studio, a company she co-founded. The project, which the research team refers to as a "tool kit," comprises apps, training videos, patient resources and education materials related to prenatal and postpartum care.
For the pilot study, the team will develop and test a prototype targeting African-American teenage girls in Englewood, a Chicago neighborhood that reports 25 percent of adolescents have back-to-back pregnancies. The study participants will have opportunities to offer their involvement in the tool kit's development, according to the researchers.
"We want it to be informed by the patients," Danielle Lazar, director of research at Access Community Health Network's Center for Discovery and Learning, told WTTW Chicago Tonight. "We want to make sure teens using the app are informed about [contraception] options, why it is important to make time between pregnancies longer and [motivate] them to take action and make sure they're engaged in the process."