Akers Research Group
Principal Investigator:
Aletha Akers, MD, MPH
The researchers at Akers Research Group explore reproductive health, sexuality, and HIV/STD transmission.
A. Enhancing Adolescent Preventive Health Services: Exploring the Role of Computer-Based Parent Reproductive Health Education during Adolescent Well-Child Visits
This pilot study is designed to assess the potential of using computer-based technology in pediatric clinics. The technology would provide reproductive health education to parents of adolescents and offer guidance to improving communication with their children about sexual health issues. Questionnaires have been given to 700 parents of adolescents to determine where they obtain information about parenting and to gauge their interest in computer-based reproductive health and parenting information delivered in clinics. Focus groups with pediatric and adolescent medicine providers are conducted to explore their attitudes towards providing parents with information on reproductive health and parenting and delivering computer-based educational materials to parents in clinical settings.
B. The Talking Village Intervention: Developing an Interactive Media Intervention Targeting Rural African-American Parents to Reduce Adolescent Sexual Risk Behaviors
The primary goal of this career development award is to design and pilot test an interactive media intervention aimed at improving parental communication about sex among African-American parents of pre- and early adolescents aged 10 to 14 years and to increase parental monitoring of their children’s social activities.
C. Teach Your Children Well: Developing a Pilot Intervention to Empower African-American Parents to Promote Safe Sex among Their Adolescents
This program seeks to develop and test the feasibility of a theory-based, culturally-appropriate intervention particularly for African American parents in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, to help them promote responsible sexual behaviors among their male and female adolescents.
Lab Members
Cynthia Holland, MPH
Project Manager
412-641-4597
Email
Selected Publications
- Akers AY, Lynch CS, Gold MA, Chang J, Doswell W, Wiesenfeld H, Feng W, & Bost J. Exploring the relationship between weight, race, and sexual behaviors among girls. Pediatrics, 913-20, Nov. 2009.
- Santucci AK, Gold MA, Akers AY, Borrero S, & Schwarz EB. Women's perspectives on counseling about risks for medication-induced birth defects. Birth Defects Res A Clin Mol Teratol, Jul. 27, 2009.
- Schwarz EB, Santucci A, Borrero S, Akers AY, Nikolajski C, & Gold MA. Perspectives of primary care clinicians on teratogenic risk counseling. Birth Defects Res A Clin Mol Teratol, Jul. 8, 2009.
- Beigi RH, Davis G, Hodges J, & Akers A. Preparedness planning for pandemic influenza among large U.S. maternity hospitals. Emerging Health Threats J, 2(e2):1-5, Mar. 2009.
- Ragin CC, Edwards RP, Jones J, Thurman NE, Hagan KL, Jones EA, Moss CM, Smith AC, Akers A, Gollin SM, Heron DE, Andraos-Selim C, Bondzi C, Robertson L, & Taioli E. Knowledge about human papillomavirus and the HPV vaccine – a survey of the general population. Infect Agent Canc, 4(Suppl1):S10, 2009.
- Akers AY, Bernstein LB, Doyle J, & Corbie-Smith G. Older women and HIV testing: Examining the relationship between HIV testing history, age and lifetime HIV risk behaviors sexually transmitted diseases. Sex Transm Dis, 35(4):420-23, Apr. 2008.
- Akers AY, Bernstein LB, Henderson SJ, Doyle J, & Corbie-Smith G. Factors associated with Human Immunodeficiency Virus testing among older, urban women. J Womens Health, 16(6):842-58, Jul./Aug. 2007.
- Akers AY, Newmann SJ, & Smith, JS. Factors underlying disparities in cervical cancer incidence, screening, and treatment in the United States. Curr Prob Cancer, 31(3):157-81, May/Jun. 2007.