The Teen Reproductive Health Services Center, Grady Health System, serves more than 1,800 teens a year, two thirds of whom have never been involved in a pregnancy. The program was developed to address the needs of Atlanta area teens 30 years ago in response to staggering teen pregnancy statistics.  The Teen Reproductive Health Services program was recently granted special space dedicated to serving teens at Grady Memorial Hospital. The new center was developed, in part, through the generosity of Jane Fonda.  It includes four exam rooms and nine counseling rooms, a nutrition education area, education rooms for patients, two rooms for staff training, and a community technology center featuring eight computer stations with high speed Internet access for teens to use while they wait for their appointments. The Clinic offers both weekend and weekday hours.

The Service has grown from serving 300 young mothers yearly in the 1970s to over 1,800 mostly non-pregnant girls in 2004.  It has grown from providing education to a few schools upon request to a formal agreement with the Board of Atlanta Schools to provided 10 hours of information and skill-building; from having an adult-led education program to hiring and training 70 youth educators each year; from only serving girls to now providing clinical, counseling, and educational services for both young women and young men; and from serving patients in shared clinic space with adults to having a dedicated teen-friendly space of its own.

The Teen Reproductive Health Services Center was the recipient of a 2005 Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award from the Rollins School of Public Health and the Goizueta School of Business at Emory University.  The award honors the work of individuals and organizations who exemplify the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King.  Teen Services was honored for its long service to Atlanta’s most at-risk youth.  The Center was noted for working to prevent teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections among youth. 

Some of the programs and materials developed by the Teen Reproductive Health Services Center in cooperation with the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics have been used world-wide.  Soon to be released is an interactive CD-ROM aimed at African American Teen Males.  Designed to give information that will help young men protect their reproductive health, it also contains information intended to affect health disparities among older males by encouraging better health habits while young.

The Teen Reproductive Health Services Center is supported through a combination of public and private funding.  The program receives basic support from the State of Georgia.  It supplements this funding through a variety of grants, contracts, and direct public donations.

The Teen Reproductive Health Services Center can be reached at 404-616-3513.