O2024: Building Youth Friendly Health Environments in Schools

Background: Quality healthcare provided in youth-friendly environments is critical during adolescence because it encourages healthy habits, modifies, or deters risky behavior, and promotes overall health. Previous studies have shown success in patient outcomes by embracing a youth-centered approach. Additionally, collaborating with youth for their perspective and expertise has been beneficial in providing valuable insight to what they look for in healthcare services. Empowering youth to openly share their opinions and ideas can lead to a higher satisfaction in their experiences with healthcare services. The purpose of this project is to develop prototypes for youth-centered culturally relevant health posters to be displayed in Hawaiian public high school health clinics to address major adolescent health concerns, knowledge gaps and reduce disparities.

Methods: The following project sough input from a youth advisory board and an adult advisory board which included healthcare providers, teachers, counselors, parents, and community members. Online discussions elicited information on how to frame health messages, priority health topics, and desired features for graphic design. The research team facilitated the discussions along with a graphic designer; field notes and Google Jamboard engagement were captured. Meetings utilized Google Jamboard to facilitate open discussion, creativity, and engagement in a confidential way. The protocol included: 1) Round one meetings with advisory boards, 2) prototyping posters, 3) round two meetings to elicit feedback, and 4) final poster development.

Results: The advisory boards consisting of youth (n=9) and adults (n=11) provided insights related to: 1) priority adolescent health issues, 2) topics needing greater education, and 3) best strategies for messaging and graphics. Healthy relationships, mental health, sexual health, and confidentiality were identified by both the youth and adults as priority topics needing greater health messaging. Posters should feature clear, direct, concise messaging with an inclusive feel but with limited imagery and no reference to adolescent popular culture. QR codes should be used to link students to vetted/trusted websites where they can learn more. The second round of feedback on the prototypes was utilized to refine the posters designs prior to printing.

Conclusion: In order to reduce health disparities for adolescents’ health care organizations need to foster safe, youth friendly environments. Youth-centered and culturally relevant health graphics to address major adolescent health concerns and health knowledge gaps are necessary. This project highlights the need to engage youth as well as adult key informants in identifying priority health needs in their schools and best practices to deliver health messaging in culturally informed ways. Further work is needed to trial messaging efficacy in various platforms- clinic posters and brochures with QR codes to link youth to additional resources as well as social media campaigns build by youths for youth to improve health outcomes.