California Adolescent Health Collaborative

he Tobacco Control Policy Leadership Institute developed adolescent leaders as advocates for tobacco control policies in their communities. The project focused on building capacity of the adolescents and creating awareness campaign presentations on the dangers of tobacco, and the ways that the tobacco industry markets towards local youth. Additionally, to build community awareness on pending policy changes, the team advocated and testified at city council meetings in Oakland and San Leandro.

The Breastfeeding Among Young Mothers research project (YMR) was created to understand how breastfeeding behavior modification can enable breast cancer risk reduction among young, diverse mothers. The study used community-based participatory research to investigate multi-level (social and structural) barriers and facilitators of breastfeeding in this vulnerable population. Brighter Beginnings and a dedicated advisory committee of volunteers provided key support throughout the project.

Castlemont High School officially launched their Community Health Equity Academy (CHEA) in 2017. This pathway is rooted in the social determinants of health and integrates public health themes with lived experiences. The California Adolescent Health Collaborative supports CHEA by creating learning and skills application opportunities, managing the Youth Advisory Council (YAC), and providing core support to CHEA teachers for the CHEA curriculum and overall academy efforts.

In collaboration with Livingston Community Health in the Central Valley and Asian Health Services in Oakland’s Chinatown, CAHC organized two advisory boards comprised of adolescent patients, providers, researchers, and other stakeholders to develop capacity for and engagement in patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR). As members of the advisory boards, adolescent patients were engaged and trained as co-researchers and research priorities were identified at each location.

The goal of H-REP is to help youth ages 14-24 in Stanislaus and Merced Counties gain the skills they need to develop healthy personal and professional relationships, access support resources, and work towards economic stability. H-REP provides Healthy Relationships Education using an evidence-based curriculum that provides opportunities for students to engage in developing healthy relationships and decision-making skills. CAHC has adapted the curriculum to be CA Healthy Youth Act compliant.

In partnership with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education (CTCRE), the META Oakland project supported Bay Area youth researchers using PhotoVoice to investigate how youth perceive e-cigarettes and how e-cigarettes are marketed toward youth in Oakland.