How We’ve Helped: Enhancing adolescent and professional capacity across Maryland
Adapting a unified training strategy, PARI evaluates and coordinates trainings across professional disciplines to enhance the capacity and competency of professionals to meet the needs of Maryland’s vulnerable children and youth.
How We’ve Helped: Dissemination activities and resources
In collaboration with project partners, PARI developed various dissemination activities, resources and asynchronous e-learning modules for public and professional disciplines addressing child trafficking and adolescent health risks across Maryland.
How We’ve Helped: Strengthened Partnerships and Collaborations across Maryland
PARI fosters collaborative relationships between diverse partners, including federal, state, local and community partners. State partners such as the Maryland Department of Human Services, Maryland Department of Juvenile Services, Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth and Services have supported PARI with engagement efforts for youth recruitment efforts, youth provider/professional workforce training opportunities and public awareness activities (conference). PARI continues to support the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force, Human Trafficking Clinical Collaborative, Regional Navigators, Labor Trafficking Collaborative, Survivor Leaders Advisory Council, Maryland Children’s Alliance (Child Sex Trafficking MDTs).
How We’ve Helped: Collection of data to make informed decisions impacting our youth
PARI leads data collection efforts related to child trafficking and adolescent health risks for system-involved youth across Maryland. Child trafficking reports have been used to understand trends and where trafficking was happening in Maryland. Adolescent health risk indicators have been used to develop appropriate sustainable prevention programming for youth.
|
Adolescent Health Risk Indicators |
% |
|
Early Sexual Debut (before age 16) |
84% |
|
----- Younger than 11 years old |
|
|
Non-Voluntary Sexual Debut |
|
|
Birth Control at First Sex (Condoms) |
|
|
Sex without condom in last 3 months |
98% |
|
Sex without any birth control in last 3 months |
59% |
|
Pregnant or gotten someone pregnant |
|
|
Spoken to medical professional-tested for STI |
|
|
---- Told they had STI after testing |
10% |
|
Adolescent Health Risk Indicators |
Mean |
|
Mean age for first sex |
|
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Mean number of lifetime sexual partners |
|
How We’ve Helped: Using Data to Influence Policy Development
As a research group, data-driven decision making is a core value of PARI. Members of the PARI Team continue to influence policy decisions, and play active roles in the Safe Harbor Workgroup and Youth Sexual Health Initiative (YoShi). PARI contributed to the last Maryland Safe Harbor Workgroup 2018 Final Report and recently presented the findings for Baltimore Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative for Out-of-Home Youth: Final Technical Report 2021 to the YoShi Workgroup: Bringing Sexual Health Strategy into Action.
How We’ve Helped: Expansion of services and survivor leadership opportunities
PARI continues to support adolescents as they navigate adulthood and independence. PARI has provided funding for specialized, trauma-informed services for child trafficking victims. In addition, PARI has supported survivor leadership development opportunities, by empowering survivors to embed victim-centered perspectives into training curriculum, policy, and dissemination activities.