Yes and Know

Funder

Office of Population Affairs, Department of Health and Human Services

Funding Duration

Aug 2023 – Aug 2028

Partner

University of California at San Francisco

Principal Investigators

Dr. Rebecca Braun & Dr. Karin Coyle

Description

ETR, along with evaluation partners at the UCSF Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, will be conducting a rigorous evaluation of Yes and Know, a fully virtual intervention that integrates synchronous group-based education with asynchronous digital tools to support young people ages 14-19 by increasing their relationship and healthy life skills, with the goal of reducing unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. The evaluation will test the efficacy of Yes and Know using a cluster randomized controlled trial to compare short- and long-term outcomes among youth living in rural communities across the United States.

The evaluation of Yes and Know addresses multiple gaps in existing evidence-based interventions highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the feasibility and efficacy of fully virtual sexual health programs, including self-paced, asynchronous learning supported by technology. This new modality for implementation can profoundly transform future program development and address inequities by extending the reach to youth missed by traditional in-person, school-based programming. The study will also add to the literature on interventions for rural populations, with the potential to reduce persistent geographic disparities in unintended pregnancy and STIs, as well as centering youth voice through ETR’s collaborative Trauma-Informed Youth Centered Health Design process.