What This Means
This research describes the design and protocol for a study testing a mobile phone-based sexual health education program called Next4You, created specifically for teenagers who are in or have recently left the foster care system. Foster youth face significantly higher rates of unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections compared to other teens, yet very few sexual health programs have been designed with their specific needs and life experiences in mind. The Next4You program was built over about seven months with direct input from foster youth themselves, covers topics like healthy relationships, contraception, communication, and consent, and can be completed at the user's own pace over four weeks entirely on a mobile device.
The study is a randomized controlled trial enrolling 500 young people aged 16-19 in California who have current or past foster care experience. Half are randomly assigned to use Next4You, while the other half access general health information through a similar-looking website. All participants answer surveys at the start of the study and again at 3 and 9 months later, measuring things like contraceptive use, ability to communicate about sex, and confidence in giving and receiving consent. After the 9-month survey, everyone gets access to the program they didn't originally receive. Recruitment ran from September 2023 through May 2025, with final data expected by early 2026.
This research suggests that a mobile, youth-designed, trauma-informed approach may be a promising way to reach foster youth with sexual health education that other programs have largely failed to provide. If the program is shown to be effective, it could offer a new, evidence-based tool that policymakers, child welfare agencies, and health practitioners could use to better support the sexual health and wellbeing of one of the most underserved groups of young people.