| |
|
Child Health
7% of Maine children are without health insurance.
Children without health insurance are less likely to receive preventive health care. 1
Factors that limit or decrease youth access to health care include:
- Lack of transportation
- Inability of students to take time off from school or inability of parents to take time off from work for doctor's appointments
- Lack of insurance or money to pay for health services
Factors specific to adolescents include:
- Lack of confidentiality of health services at other providers
- Lack of teen-specific care (many health care professionals are not trained to address the special issues of teens)
Factors specific to rural youth include:
- Limited number of medical care providers
- Increased poverty rates
- Large geographic distances
Adolescents engage in many health-risk behaviors. The following is from the Maine Youth Risk Surveillance, 2003:
- 42% of high school students reported using alcohol within the past 30 days.
- 21% of high school students reported cigarette smoking within the past 30 days.
- 31% of high school students have had sexual intercourse with at least one person in the last 3 months.
- 25% of high school students reported feeling so sad or hopeless almost every day for 2 weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities.
- 9% of high school students reported at least one suicide attempt in the last year. 2
School-Based Health Centers address the needs of teens and children by providing convenient, confidential, and affordable health care when and where students spend a large part of their time.
1 Maine Kids Count Data Book 2004. Page 4.
2 Ibid. Page 9.
Updated: Jun 28th, 2010 - 12:08:36
|
A Strong and Powerful Voice to Improve the Lives of All Maine's Children, Youth and Families
© 2002 Maine Children's Alliance, 303 State Street, Augusta, Maine 04330
v. (207) 623-1868 f. (207) 626-3302 e. Mainekids@mekids.org
Section 508/Bobby Approved. www.mekids.org
|
|
