Building Support Surveys of parents and residents demonstrate high levels of community support that enable SBHCs to counter opposition arising mostly from a small group of vocal opponents. Administrators believe that the community's support springs from its belief that SBHCs, like any other health care provider, should meet the community's standards of health service. The SBHCs do not seek media attention for contraceptive services, believing that calling attention to these services would make SBHCs seem different from other health care providers. Students may not hang out at the clinics nor work there as part of community service. All staff members are trained to work with teens, and aides usually have backgrounds similar to the students'.
Staff spends time getting to know the students and discussing family planning decisions.
Family planning is provided within the context of decisions young people make about all aspects of life. Parental Involvement Clinic staff encourages teens to involve their parents or other trusted adults in family planning decisions. The SBHCs provide all contraceptives except Norplant and find that Depo-Provera is highly popular. Every new patient as well as any student getting condoms for the first time receives family planning counseling, including information about emergency contraception and a condom demonstration. To help teens feel more comfortable in attending an SBHC, the centers advertise a comprehensive package of services rather than just their family planning component.