SHEIDD Project: Multnomah County Health Department (iTP3)

Описание: Multnomah County Health Department has been working to build the capacity of support workers, teachers, parents/guardians, health care providers, and other caregivers in teaching youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities about sexual health and safety through empowerment and self-determination.

Multnomah County Health Department proposed to develop a program that promotes comprehensive sexuality education for youth ages 14-21 with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). This program fills a major gap in existing sexual health programming by targeting youth with IDD. The Sexual Health Equity for Individuals with Intellectual/ Developmental Disabilities (SHEIDD) project build the capacity of support workers, teachers, parents/guardians, health care providers, and other caregivers to teach youth with IDD about sexual health and safety through empowerment and self-determination. Ultimately, the program aims to cultivate contexts across the ecosocial system in which young people with IDD can develop the skills needed to make informed decisions, stay safe, and pursue mutually fulfilling relationships. Comprehensive sexuality education will be accessible to youth with IDD by equipping the people responsible for teaching and nurturing them across multiple settings in their lives to deliver this information and support. This team spent the first year of funding conducting a needs assessment of youth with IDD and their various support workers and caregivers to identify gaps in existing resources and services.