Educate teens about sex

Have you ever counseled a pregnant 15-year-old who never knew her options to prevent pregnancy? Have you ever hospitalized a 17-year-old for a pelvic infection caused by a bacteria that she had never heard of?

I have.

I am an ob-gyn, and I've witnessed the human effects of Utah's sexually transmitted disease rates increasing more than 50 percent from 2003-07.

Despite these sobering realities, I am excited. Friends of our state, like Rep. Lynn Hemingway, have recognized these problems and proposed a solution that includes greater education. In addition to abstinence-only sex education, parents may finally get the option of choosing a more complete program for their kids in school.

While I applaud the PTA's new program to educate parents, this is not enough. Give parents the most help possible by offering a curriculum-based program to educate their kids with information that could literally save their lives. Teens have a right to know how their bodies work, the true risks associated with different behaviors and ways to decrease or eliminate those risks. As a parent, PTA member and physician, I firmly believe we cannot go wrong by offering parents choices.

Audrey Jiricko, M.D.

Ogden