Running Head: TEENAGE MOTHERS VULNERABLE POPULATION

Examination of Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

Leigh Anne Koonmen
Ferris State University

Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

Teenage Pregnancy
Across all developed and developing countries teenage pregnancy remains a major
concern for health care providers. According to Dr. Ganash Dangal (2004), a pregnant girl is
considered as being included in the teenage mother demographic during the ages of
adolescence occurring from 10 to 19 years of age (Dangal, 2004). Approximately 47.8% of high
school students are engaging in sexual intercourse and 13% of all infants born each year are born
to teenage mothers (Harkness &DeMarco, 2012). Despite this, teenage pregnancy rates have
actually declined over the last decade57.4 per 1,000 girls age 15-19 in 2010 compared to 108.0
per 1,000 girls age 15-19 in 1992 when rates were highest for that decadethough, rates still
remain high (Kost & Henshaw, 2014). Statistics taken in 2012 reveal that in Michigan teenage
pregnancy rates were 41.4 per 1,000 girls aged 15-19, and in Kent County teenage pregnancy
rates were 44.4 per 1,000 girls aged 15-19 (Michigan Department of Community Health
[MDCH], 2012). Teenage pregnancy predisposes young girls and their children to a higher
incidence of perinatal complications, psychological and economic disadvantages, as well as
education detriments.
Personal and Social Perceptions
In high school, the sister of a good friend of mine became pregnant. I attended a Catholic
high school, where sexual education classes were not offered and premarital sex was strictly
looked down upon, though not uncommonly occurring. In this environment, many of my
classmates were having premarital sex as teenagers and it was considered the societal norm
unless pregnancy resulted. As a teenage girl my initial reaction to finding out about this
pregnancy was harsh judgment of the girl and her family, even though one of her family

Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

members was my friend. I immediately attributed this girls situation to the fact that she must be
promiscuous to become pregnant and generally assumed her pregnancy resulted from a series of
poor choices. As I have grown and matured I now look back on my memory of that girl and
realize many of my feelings and reactions stemmed from a lack of knowledge regarding teenage
pregnancy.
I recently attended a public health clinical rotation through the nursing program I am
enrolled in. During this public health rotation I participated in home visits to new mothers, two
of whom were teen mothers. Seeing these young, new mothers with their infants was an eye
opening experience for me as I had previously assumed that most teen mothers would be less
inclined to be active participants in their childs health and development. This, however, was not
the case; both mothers were at the very least attentive to their children and expressed genuine
concern for their childs health and development. Through this public health rotation I learned
that many teenage mothers want to raise their children as well as they possibly can, many of
them simply lack the knowledge and resources to accomplish this on their own. After
supplementing the knowledge I gained from this clinical rotation with research regarding teenage
mothers, I now feel a greater empathy towards these young women and the struggles they may
face.
In the health care sphere, teenage pregnancy is viewed as a major problem; as stated by
Bute and Russell (2012), teenage pregnancy is increasingly viewed as a threat to public health
and the impression of teenage mothers is one of deviancy (p. 712). Despite these personal biases
towards teenage mothers, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of
Family Physicians, and the American Medical Association urge health care professionals to be
the frontline resource for teenagers in promoting responsible sexual behavior in an effort to

Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

reduce the occurrence teenage pregnancy (Harkness & DeMarco, 2012). Federal programs have
also been established to assist health care workers in providing support services to teenage
mothers, including the Women, Infants, and Children and the Vaccines for Children programs.
Predisposing Factors and Risks Associated with Teenage Pregnancy
Various factors predispose teenage girls to becoming pregnant before the age of 20.
Factors that contribute to a higher incidence of teenage pregnancy include a low socioeconomic
family status, having a mother or sister who was under the age of 19 when she gave birth, living
in a community in which teenage pregnancy is common, alcohol and substance abuse, early
dating combined with risky sexual behavior, having poor academic performance, lack of career
goals, and having been a victim to non-voluntary sexual abuse (Gandal, 2004). It should be noted
that in the United States, the average age of participating in sexually intercourse for the first time
is 17 years of age for girls and 16 years of age for boys; with this is it also important to note that
teenagers are the least likely to utilize methods of contraception than any other sexually active
age group (Gandal, 2004).
The rates of morbidity and mortality for teenage mothers and their infants are higher than
for any other age group; additionally, the majority of teenage mothers will lack educational
advancement and will live in poverty (Harkness & DeMarco, 2012). The heighten morbidity and
mortality risks may be attributed to the fact that the teenage mother is still growing and
developing, and thus has a higher nutritional demand already; when that pre-existing nutritional
demand is already high, the addition of a growing fetus can present multiple complications
related to a lack of adequate nutritional intake (Gandal, 2004). Common morbidities of children
born to teenage mothers include low birth weight, preterm birth, child abuse and neglect,

Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

poverty, and premature death (Harkness & DeMarco, 2012). Risks the teenage mother may
experience during pregnancy include poor maternal weight gain, pre-eclampsia, anemia, and a
higher risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases (Gandal, 2004).
Conclusion
Teenage mothers are a vulnerable population being predisposed to various social and
health risks. Risks associated with teenage pregnancy can present lifelong struggles for these
young mothers, so various programs have been established to provide assistance as needed.
Biases in society and in the health care industry may further prevent this population from seeking
resources to promote and support healthier outcomes. With nearly half of teenagers engaging in
sexual intercourse, programs that focus on preventing teenage pregnancy are vital to continue the
currently declining rates. Health care professionals are encouraged to be the frontline resource in
educating young patients on sexually responsible behavior.

Teenage Mothers as a Vulnerable Population

References
Bute, J.J., & Russell, L.D. (2012). Public discourses about teenage pregnancy: Disruption,
restoration, and ideology. Health Communication, 27(7), 712-722.
DOI: 10.1080/10410236.2011.636479
Dangal, G. (2004). An update on teenage pregnancy. The Internet Journal of Gynecology
and Obstetrics, 5(1). Retrieved from
https://ispub.com/IJGO/5/1/5586#
Harkness, G. A., & DeMarco, R.F. (2012). Community and public health nursing: Evidence for
practice. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Kost, K. & Henshaw, S. (2014). U.S. teenage pregnancies, births and abortions, 2010:
National and state trends by age, race, and ethnicity. Guttmacher Institute. Retrieved
from: http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/USTPtrends10.pdf
Michigan Department of Community Health. (2012). Pregnancies by outcome and fertility,
abortion and pregnancy rates by county estimated population for females Michigan
residents, 2012: Females age 15-19 [Data file]. Retrieved from
http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/pha/osr/abortion/pregbycoteen.asp