Pregnancy info agency on the move
By Angela Fornelli
staff writer
AURORA — An Aurora agency that provides information to those facing unplanned pregnancies has seen such a large surge in clients recently that it is moving to a larger building.
But the growth in clientele does not necessarily mean there has been an increase locally in unplanned pregnancies.
In fact, the Pregnancy Information Center's need for more space is most likely a positive sign — more women are seeking prenatal care, a step known to decrease infant mortality rates and generally enhance the health of mother and baby, officials said.
The Christian-based agency, which provides pregnancy tests, education and counseling to a mostly teenage clientele, will soon move to a new location at 411 W. Galena Blvd. after being tucked behind larger buildings on Lake Street for 20 years.
The center provides information on pregnancy, abortion and other options, with a goal of upholding "the sanctity of human life" by advising against abortion.
The organization has seen the number of clients grow from 507 in 2000 to more than 1,400 last year, an increase Executive Director Bev Callison attributes to more referrals from Aurora high schools, hospitals and the Kane County Health Department.
While teen births in Aurora decreased slightly between 1999 and 2001, the percentage of those seeking prenatal care in the first trimester increased at generally higher rates, according to the Kane County Health Department.
In Kane County, mirroring state trends, the percentage of teenagers who gave birth steadily declined from 10.7 percent in 1999 to 8.3 percent in 2002, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
While the numbers are declining, teen pregnancy remains a serious issue in the county. In 2002, Kane County had 723 teen pregnancies, second only to Cook County in the state, according to a study released last October by the Illinois Poverty Summit.
Of the county's births, 250 were to teenage Hispanics in Aurora. Of those, nine were born to mothers between ages 10 and 14, 82 were born to girls ages 15 to 17, and 159 were born to 18- and 19-year-olds.
That population has played a large role in the increased clientele at the Pregnancy Information Center, Callison said. Forty percent of the center's clients are Hispanic, while the other 60 percent is split evenly between whites and blacks.
Of the 251 women seeking the agency's free, confidential pregnancy tests in 2004, 104 were between ages 15 and 19 and another 92 were between age 20 and 24.
The not-for-profit agency will better be able to serve these clients after receiving a substantial increase in donations, allowing the $550,000 purchase of the new facility, Callison said.
The new space is double the size of the current center and will accommodate larger counseling rooms, more administrative office and storage space, and a new training center with computers to facilitate basic life skills classes for the clients.
An open house and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new building will be held in September.
8/17/05
SOURCE:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/b...REGNANT_S1.htm
Pregnancy info agency on the move
