Monroe County offers some of the best pediatric health care in the country. Yet, children in Monroe County have poor outcomes in a number of important areas. At the 16^th Annual Anne E. Dyson Memorial Grand Rounds, set for Wednesday, March 9 at 8:00 a.m. in the Class of 鈥�62 Auditorium, local panelists will discuss the connections between teen and unplanned pregnancy and poverty, and the evidence-based programs that can address unintended pregnancy in Rochester.聽

The Dyson Day lecture, hosted by the Hoekelman Center, will complement last year鈥檚 speaker, Ed Doherty, who reported on the grave and pervasive poverty in Rochester.鈥淧reventing teen pregnancy would be part of the solution to big problems that people are worried about,鈥� said Andrew Aligne, M.D., assistant professor of Pediatrics at UR Medicine鈥檚 Golisano Children鈥檚 and executive director of the Hoekelman Center. 鈥淔ortunately, there are effective, evidence-based ways to prevent teen pregnancy, ranging from positive youth development to highly effective contraception. However, teen pregnancy prevention is rarely part of the public discussion on how to address poverty, school failure, infant mortality, etc. When it does come up, there are lots of myths out there.鈥�

Erica Bryant, a columnist for the Democrat & Chronicle, will moderate the panel.

Featured panelists will be:

- Lauren Deutsch, Executive Director of the Healthy Baby Network- Thomas McInerny, M.D., former President of the American Academy of Pediatrics and Professor Emeritus, Department of Pediatrics, URMC
- Rachael Phelps, M.D., Medical Director of Planned Parenthood of Central and Western NY- Marisol Ramos-Lopez, Commissioner of Department of Recreation and Youth services, City of Rochester
- Grishemary Rosado, youth advocate and former member of Safe Sex, Inc.

At 10 a.m., there will be an additional lecture providing information about the safety, effectiveness, and availability of long- acting reversible contraception for teens in Rochester. This talk is sponsored by the Greater Rochester LARC Initiative.

Both events are free and open to the public. The Class of 鈥�62 Auditorium is on the Medical Center鈥檚 ground floor, near the entrance to the School of Medicine and Dentistry. For more information, call (585) 273-3737.