Statewide Assessment

The existing research is clear: A variety of factors contribute to the challenges people face when they attempt to access sexual and reproductive services and information.  

National and international research and publications point to financial constraints, stigma, insurance barriers, and confidentiality concerns, just to name a few.  

These variables become even more complicated when we examine distinct demographic groups. Youth, young adults, LGBTQ+, and other vulnerable populations experience an even harder time accessing services like STI testing, contraceptive counseling, cancer screenings, and other related care. 

However, we know from the literature that some factors are tied to increased access.

These factors include:

• Education and awareness 
• Culturally competent and appropriate resources 
• Youth-friendly services 
• Secure, safe, and comfortable environments 
• Support from peers, family, and the community.  

Our questions: How do these factors map out across Nebraska? What makes our state unique, where are the service gaps, and how can we best meet the access needs of Nebraskans?  

Our community survey, The State of Access, will help us dig into what access really means and how to best support it, right here at home.  

The State of Access is a statewide community survey to examine the most current state of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs in Nebraska. We’ll use the results to help organizations and agencies statewide enhance their efforts to address unmet needs.

The survey spans five key research areas.

Access to services: How easy or difficult is it for Nebraskans to access SRH services? What facilitates access, and what makes it harder? Are there differences in access by region or key demographic groups?

Information and knowledge: How knowledgeable are Nebraskans about SRH? What are their sources of information, and how reliable are those sources? Are there differences in education or information sources by region or key demographic groups?

Clinic experiences: How are Nebraskans experiencing SRH services?  What makes for a better or worse clinic experience? Are there differences by regions or key demographic groups?

Empowerment and self-efficacy: How confident are Nebraskans in navigating healthcare systems? How able are they to advocate for themselves in healthcare settings? Are there differences by regions or key demographic groups?

Attitudes: How do Nebraskans feel about SRH topics? How do Nebraskans view SRH? Are there differences by regions or key demographic groups?

Nebraska is a unique place with a diverse array of people, attitudes, and perceptions around reproductive health. The State of Access will help us understand the full picture, east to west, so we can ensure our strategies are aligned to meet the emerging needs of Nebraskans.

Educating Stakeholders Statewide: After a careful analysis and interpretation of the results, we’ll share our insights with key stakeholders in our local sexual and reproductive health ecosystem. This includes agencies and providers we fund, lawmakers and policy experts, healthcare systems, peer nonprofit agencies, organizations that serve a variety of populations with specific needs, and community members.

Expanding Sexual Health Education & Outreach: Learnings and themes that emerge from the assessment will inform our statewide approach to sex education, supporting the efforts of our regional community educators, professional programming for staff in our funded network and peer organizations, and broader community education opportunities.

Driving Innovation Across Strategies: Steered by insights from the results, we’ll continue our exploration of creative approaches to reducing common barriers in access to care and knowledge.

Shaping Advocacy Priorities: Findings from the assessment will help us identify opportunities to advance positive public policy that strengthens paths to access, supporting the needs of patients and providers alike.

Protecting Your Information: We’re grateful for your willingness to share information that might feel sensitive or private. Your identity will be kept confidential, and the content of your responses will be anonymized. We’ve taken measures to ensure only team members essential to this project can access raw survey responses. 

If you choose to share your email address with us, we will use it to enter you into the gift card raffle and to follow up for voluntary opportunities to stay involved. It will not be attached to your responses for any other purpose. 

Nebraska has a great need for expanded access to reproductive healthcare and education, particularly in our state’s rural areas.

Nationwide, 19 million women live in contraceptive deserts, and 19 rural Nebraska counties lack a provider who can prescribe contraception. In recent years, access to services has been threatened both locally and nationally.

With health misinformation on the rise and no comprehensive standards in place, Nebraska’s students are more in need than ever of high-quality, comprehensive sex education.

By lending your experience, you will help us make informed, targeted adjustments in our approach and contribute to results that we’ll use to collaborate with drivers of change.

Additionally, as a “thank you” for supporting The State of Access project, participants who include an email address on their survey responses will be entered into a drawing for the chance to win one of four Amazon gift cards.

• One winner will receive a $100 gift card
• One winner will receive a $50 gift card
• Two winners will receive a $25 gift card

To ground our work in lived experience, we’re inviting community members who complete the survey to join us for sense-making sessions—group discussions where we’ll interpret the results and gather input on how they might shape our work going forward.

You must include an email address if you wish to be entered into the raffle and/or join us for sense-making sessions.