O2042: Assessing the Impact of a Youth-led Health Education Program on Information Sharing and Behaviors Among Adolescents Throughout India

Background: India is home to over 240 million adolescents, many of whom face barriers to receiving adolescent-focused health information. Several promising studies show the success of school-led peer health education in delivering context-sensitive, community-relevant health information to adolescents. Of note, information-sharing has been shown to be a precursor to positive adolescent health-related behaviors. This study sought to assess the impact of one such peer-led educational intervention called Adolescent Health Champions (AHC).

Methods: Youth participants recruited from one New Delhi (School A) and one Mumbai-based private school (School B) were surveyed about their health behaviors and information-sharing practices before and after virtually participating in the AHC peer education program. A total of 263 participants between the eighth to tenth standards (age range of 12 to 16 years) participated in this study. Objectives of interest included intended behaviors and plans for information-sharing about curricular content of which the likelihood was examined both before and after the virtual AHC intervention. All data was de-identified and examined aggregately. A one-sided Z test of proportions was conducted and corresponding p-values were derived, using an alpha-level of 0.05 for statistical significance.

Results: With regards to information sharing, across both schools, this study found statistically significant changes in disseminating information related to gender and relationships (62.2% increase and 66.8% increase, p< 0.0001 in schools A and B, respectively). A similar trend was seen in information sharing regarding mental health strategies (55.0% and 62.1% increase, p< 0.0001), healthful nutrition and anemia-related knowledge and practices (59.7% and 65.9% increase, p< 0.0001), COVID-19 behaviors (18.2% and 23.5% increase, p = 0.0003), and biological information around puberty and reproduction (61.9% and 53.5% increase, p< 0.0001).

Researchers also examined the likelihood of exhibiting various health behaviors pre- and post-intervention, specifically related to mental health, gender, and COVID-19. Positive behavior changes were in those who were willing to participate as an active bystander when witnessing harmful interactions (22.10% and 33.9% increase, p< 0.0001) and in the likelihood of using evidence-based coping strategies to maintain one’s mental health (41.4% and 52.7% increase p< 0.0001).

Conclusion: Virtual school-based, peer-led interventions such as AHC may serve as invaluable resources in educating youth with comprehensive health information to make informed health choices. This preliminary study shows that peer-led interventions may encourage information-sharing and promote positive behavior changes. More research is needed to better understand the impact of peer-led interventions on information-sharing and behaviors among adolescents in a longitudinal fashion. Overall, this study finds that youth may serve as powerful agents of health promotion, information sharing and behavioral change, especially in resource-limited settings.