Lessons learned from a mentoring program for teenage mothers.

The Milwaukee (Wisconsin US) Collaborative Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Program a mentoring program designed to decrease the risk of repeat pregnancy among unmarried primiparous teens 12-19 years old was a joint venture of a medical school an urban hospital and a community-based social service agency. Mentors underwent 20 hours of classroom training and were expected to spend at least 12 hours a month with a teen. In the present evaluative study 110 teen mothers (mean age 16.5 years) were randomly assigned to receive a mentor (n = 53) or to the control group (n = 57) where assistance was provided by community agencies. Interviews conducted at 6 12 18 and 24 months postpartum collected data on repeat pregnancy educational outcomes and psychological adjustment. At the 24-month follow-up 52.8% of teens in the mentored group and 47.4% of controls had graduated or advanced two grades; 9.4% and 12.3% respectively had dropped out of school. Psychological testing revealed no significant differences between teen mothers in the two groups in terms of self-esteem or depression. 66.0% of teens in the mentored group and 68.8% of those in the control group experienced at least one repeat pregnancy within 33 months. The reasons for the unexpected lack of difference in repeat pregnancies and educational attainment between teens in the intervention and control groups is unclear. It was observed however that the mentors found it difficult to initiate discussions about sexuality and contraception with the teens to whom they were assigned.