Demographic characteristics and needs of the Canadian urban adolescent mother and her child

INTRODUCTION: There is a paucity of Canadian-based literature on urban adolescent mothers and their children. To inform clinical assessment and interventions and to mitigate the risks that adolescent mothers and their children face, it is essential to understand the characteristics of this high-risk population. METHODS: A retrospective review of 116 adolescent mothers attending an urban academic hospital-based outpatient clinic in Canada from 2005 to 2009 was conducted. The following information was collected: demographic characteristics, maternal maltreatment history, substance use, postpartum depression symptoms, and child socioemotional and developmental functioning. RESULTS : The mean maternal age was 16.1 years and the mean education level was grade 9. Ninety-nine percent of adolescent mothers were single, 47% had a history of child welfare involvement and 18% had previous involvement with the judicial system. More than one-half of participants reported a history of both maltreatment and substance abuse, and 20% of adolescent mothers scored in the clinical range for postpartum depression. A substantial proportion of children scored in the clinical range for behavioural problems, regulatory difficulties and suspected developmental delays. CONCLUSION: The present study serves to illustrate the high-risk nature of urban adolescent mothers. These observations can be used to improve clinical practice for health care providers in community and hospital-based settings working with this population.