Pregnancy prevention in primary care for adolescent males

Despite federal, state, and community attention to the issue, pregnancy among adolescents remains a significant problem, with close to a million adolescents becoming pregnant each year. Most pregnancy prevention programs focus on young women; few effective or innovative programs exist for adolescent males. Current research supports the supposition that gender differences exist with regard to sexual knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors and that young men are at an educational disadvantage compared with their female peers. Gender differences must be addressed when planning effective pregnancy prevention interventions. Using the Health Belief Model, pediatric nurse practitioners can better design interventions that actively involve adolescent males in the responsibilities of pregnancy prevention.