What This Means
This research describes the development and early testing of a program called AccessKCTeen, designed to help marginalized teenagers access sexual and reproductive health services. The program was built with community input and included health information events, free supplies like condoms, the ability to see a doctor through telemedicine, and visits from a mobile health clinic. The study recruited 96 teenagers at eight community events, many of whom were Black, Hispanic, gender minority, or sexual minority youth — groups that often face greater barriers to healthcare.
The results suggest the program was well-received: most participants were very satisfied with the events, many accepted health supplies to use later, and teens described telemedicine and the mobile clinic as private, safe, and trustworthy. One month after the events, 20% of participants had obtained healthcare, and average trust in the medical profession was slightly higher than at the start of the study (17.2 out of 25, compared to 16.4 at baseline).
This research suggests that combining community outreach events with telemedicine and mobile clinics is an acceptable approach for reaching teenagers who might otherwise struggle to access sexual and reproductive healthcare. The study was a small pilot, so the authors conclude that the program shows enough promise to justify a larger study to properly measure its impact on teens' health outcomes.