Decisions regarding reproductive health can be daunting for anyone, especially adolescents and young adults. There is a program in Indiana that helps them navigate to high-quality contraceptive care with qualified health providers for free. PATH4YOU, a program led by obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics faculty at Indiana University School of Medicine, offers person-centered comprehensive pregnancy planning and contraception access to ensure people can decide if, when and how to become pregnant.
The vision of PATH4YOU, which stands for “pregnancy at a time that is happy and healthy for you,” is to help people make informed and supported reproductive health decisions in an environment grounded in trust, dignity and respect. The PATH4YOU service model is a three-tiered intervention program that offers universal pregnancy intention screening; comprehensive contraceptive counseling and decision support and same-day contraceptive method access, including long-acting reversible contraception (LARC).
Since PATH4YOU launched in 2021, providers have served more than 3,600 unique patients that report zip codes from 87% of Indiana counties. They have also supplied more than 4,600 birth control methods, 44% of which were long-acting options. While a majority of care was done via in-person appointments, 22% were conducted via telehealth. PATH4YOU also offers free emergency contraception and has fulfilled more than 1,000 requests in 2025 alone.
PATH4YOU expands statewide in-person sites
Currently, there are 19 in-person locations across the state, including seven in Indianapolis, three in Fort Wayne and single clinics in Valparaiso, Jeffersonville, Terre Haute, Bedford, Washington, Jasper, Evansville, Sullivan and Vincennes. PATH4YOU is also offered to patients via telehealth visits on evenings and weekends to ensure care is available to Hoosiers regardless of their location or schedule. The PATH4YOU program also has a dedicated navigator for anyone who needs additional assistance with the process, and patients can communicate directly with the navigator via text or email.
The program is grounded in community engagement work and participates in more than 65 events throughout Indiana annually, including community health events, organizational baby showers and PRIDE events in Fort Wayne, Evansville and Indianapolis.
When people book an appointment with PATH4YOU, they receive a self-directed decision aid — the Birth Control Explorer. This tool prompts users to reflect on their pregnancy intentions and learn about contraceptive options based on their goals, whether they want to become pregnant soon, later or not at all. It’s also freely available on the PATH4YOU website for anyone to use, even without an appointment. During the visit, patients meet with a trained provider to discuss their family planning goals and, if they choose, can receive a contraceptive method at no cost. Their goal is to provide care that is personalized and free from pressure, cost and judgment.
“Women lack affordable, easy access to high quality reproductive care that’s free of judgment and free of coercion, explains PATH4YOU project co-lead Brownsyne Tucker Edmonds, MD, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and associate dean for Health System Research and Transformation at IU School of Medicine. “We solve the problem by learning your priorities, sharing all of your options and providing you with immediate care.”
Adolescent, young adult research helps shape future care
Last spring, PATH4YOU project co-lead and associate professor of pediatrics Tracey A. Wilkinson, MD, MPH, co-authored a paper published in the Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology that found perceptions among adolescent and young adults (AYAs) peers to vary by age regarding contraception non-use, likely due to their own exposure to contraception information from their peers and their own personal contraception experiences. They also found AYAs might not use prescribed contraceptives because they are concerned about the form of birth control being harmful or that they may be stigmatized for using contraception. Older peers were less concerned about perceived stigma and logistical barriers and more concerned about their prescribed contraception being harmful. Authors of the paper indicate AYAs perceived reservations regarding prescribed contraception are important to help inform clinicians’ counseling conversations and public health messaging.
“As a pediatrician, I am reminded every day of the amount of misinformation and disinformation that adolescents and young adults receive when it comes to reproductive health,” Wilkinson said. “Finding trusted clinicians that are grounded in person-centered care and following the most updated guidelines and evidence is critical to their information base, and their ability to access care. The PATH4YOU program can fill that critical gap and make sure that AYAs find that care in the state of Indiana.”
Additionally, researchers from the IU School of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Pediatrics and Department of Biostatics and Health Data Science as well as the IU School of Nursing published a paper on the social deprivation index and contraception access initiative through PATH4YOU. Living in poverty, limited education (under 12 years), living in overcrowded housing units, no motor vehicle access and unemployment were among several social deprivation issues that researchers recorded. The findings, which were published in Contraception in May 2025, show that those with the greatest social deprivation chose in-person care (93.1% vs. 63.4%) and long-lasting contraception (52.8% vs. 35.6%) when compared to participants in the 25th percentile.
Health provider resources
PATH4YOU also provides several resources for health care providers to facilitate patient education, including updated guidelines, trauma-informed care and vasectomy information. Patient education materials are available in four languages, including English, Spanish, Burmese and Haitian Creole. The patient-facing resources are also easily accessible and include fact sheets on topics such as reminders for birth control and patient-facing information on all birth control methods.
The PATH4YOU health care team is multidisciplinary and includes health care providers and individuals who are passionate about access to quality reproductive care for all. The team includes physicians, nurse practitioners and midwife experts in reproductive health, contraception and adolescent care who can facilitate shared decision-making.
Contact PATH4YOU. at path4you@iu.edu or check out the PATH4YOU website at www.path4you.org or follow the team on Facebook, Instagram, X and LinkedIn.
