New grant set out to educate adolescents about their sexual health
WORCESTER COUNTY, Md. – Health classes are back thanks to the county’s health department and some grant funding.
“Knowledge is power,” says says Dr. Margo Gill, a physician for Atlantic General Hospital’s Women’s Health Clinic.
The Worcester County Health Department is providing that knowledge through new grant funding.
“We’re requesting grant proposals from the community, organizations, workplaces, churches or any other interested organization to receive up to 7,000 dollars in funding and to use that money to educate youth to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections,” says Summer Widmyer, the Public Affairs Officer for Worcester County Health Department.
And doctors say this is a concern for Worcester County.
“We have seen an increase in syphilis in particular, Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. The issue with many sexually transmitted infections is there’s a lot of people who don’t even have symptoms, they don’t even know that they have the infection and that’s how it becomes very easy to spread,” says Dr. Gill.
Health officials say they’re also seeing a spike in incidental pregnancy in adolescents. And part of the program targets students ages, 12 to 19 teaching them a variety of topics.
In the meantime, health officials urge you to catch the infection before it spreads with these safe practices.
“To make sure you’re getting tested on a regular basis of at least once a year as well as using condoms or other ways of protecting yourself from getting or transmitting the infection. We do know that condoms are extremely effective,” says Dr. Gill.
The Worcester County Health Department conducted a study in 2021 a to track sexually transmitted infections along with teen pregnancy, click here to view it.
