document patterns, perceptions, and reasoning behind ED use and as-sociated services among sheltered RHY in an urban setting.Methods: Exploratory study via self-report survey of RHY living inthe youth homeless shelter in Denver, CO (Urban Peak) from July-August 2012. Survey included: demographic characteristics, geo-graphic transience, nativity, insurance coverage, ED use, reason(s) forED visit(s), and substance use. Descriptive statistics were completed;no multivariate analysis was completed due to small sample size.Results: Thirty-four youth of 64 (53%) served at Urban Peak wereinterviewed. 42% were covered by a public health insurance plan;63% reported no primary care, 18% had no health insurance and 12%were unclear about their insurance status. Fifty-five percent hadusedED services in the past year while 18% had 4 or more visits. 45%reported that their ED visit was substance use related; 23% due toalcohol use, 35% due to drug use, and 13% after using both. Thirty-eight percent of the youth reported being transported to the ED byambulance irrespective of acuity reason.Conclusions:Ourstudy is consistentwithprior research,demonstrat-ingmanyRHYutilize EDs,with visits related to lack of access to primarycare and substance use. Most of these visits are not covered by healthinsurance which places a financial strain on the public health and hos-pital systems, and potentially impedes access to housing through debtand resultant low credit scores. Further research into the role of sub-stance use in ED visits, might lead to development of ED diversioninterventions for cases that are not true emergencies. Medical home,primary care and health triaging systems tailored to RHY could alsodivert care resources within EDs. Many youth were unclear about theircurrent insurance status, and did not know conclusively how their EDvisit was covered. Finally, a remarkable number of youth were trans-ported to the ED via ambulance; this is likely due to agency policy forcalling for emergency transportation rather than triaging health needs.This finding might be addressed with collaborative plans betweenagency and hospitals for less-costly triaging systems.Sources of Support: Support for data collection was provided bythe University of Colorado LEADS (Leadership, Education, Advocacy,Development, Scholarship) Program (PI: Earnest), and generous sup-port from the Adler Scholarship (CU School of Medicine).

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CAREER MENTORING NEEDS OF YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE: VOICESFOR CHANGEAngela L. Hudson, PhD, RN.

University of California, Los Angeles

Purpose: The study purpose was to explore adolescent fosteryouths’ perspectives on mentoring, such as their definition of men-toring, characteristics theywant in amentor, and howmentoring canaddress their aspirations for the future.Methods: The study used qualitative methodology with focusgroups, designed to preface a pregnancy/STI prevention interventionfor adolescents living in foster care. A total of 27 foster youth, ages 15to 17, participated in four separate focus groups. Focus groups com-prised8 to 10male and female participants andwere audio-recorded.Foster youthwhomet the following inclusion criteriawere invited toparticipate: a) men/women between ages 14 to 17; b) in care andcustody of County of Los Angeles Department of Children and FamilyServices for at least one year; c) without developmental delay; and d)without overt psychiatric symptoms (i.e., audio/visual hallucina-tions). Focus groups were guided by a semi-structured interviewguide developed from literature of mentoring relationships withfoster youth and other at-risk youth. Approvals to conduce focusgroupswere obtained from the university institutional review board,

DCFS, and County of Los Angeles Superior Court. Narrative analysiswas used to identify themes with separate dimensions and proper-ties.Results: A total of 27 adolescents in foster care placement partici-pated. Mean age was 16.42 (SD � .68). The majority were female(63%) and over one thid each were African American (37%) andHispanic (37%). Three distinct themes emerged: ’Needing and Find-ing Authority Figures,’ ’Hooking Up with a Career Mentor,’ and ’De-serving the Good Life.’ Participants spoke of needing mentors invarious aspects of their lives (i.e., spiritual mentor, peer mentor,coach as mentor, or a teacher as mentor). Nonetheles, they wereadamant about wanting vocational or career mentoring, which waslacking from their personal experiences.Conclusions: Despite the prevalence of mentoring programs forfoster youth and other at-risk youth, foster youth remain at high riskfor homelessness, low income, early parenting or incarceration. Thefact that these youth want vocational/career mentoring instills asense of hope, that these young people are constructing their owncontexts for success.Sources of Support: This study was supported with funding fromRobert Wood Johnson Foundation Nurse Faculty Scholars Program.

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STUDYING THE PLAYBOOK: MEDIATING VARIABLES INRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SPORTS TEAM PARTICIPATION ANDHEALTH-RISK BEHAVIORS AMONG ALTERNATIVE HIGH SCHOOLSTUDENTSKaren E. Johnson, PhD1, Renee E. Sieving, PhD, FSAHM2, Linda H.Bearinger, PhD, FSAHM2, Elizabeth A. Lando-King, PhD2, Jayne A.Fulkerson, PhD2, Marla E. Eisenberg, ScD2.1The University of Texas at Austin; 2University of Minnesota

Purpose: Students attending alternative high schools (AHS) are atrisk for poor health and educational outcomes, often due to thepresence of risk factors including poverty and childhood abuse. AHSstudents are less likely than their peers in traditional high schools toparticipate on sports teams, and more likely to engage in health-riskbehaviors. Few studies have examined mediating variables in rela-tionships between sports team participation and health-risk behav-iors. No studies have examined relationships among AHS students.Using a resilience framework, this study assessed social connected-ness and emotional distress as mediators in relationships betweensports team participation and two domains of health-risk behaviors:substance use and sexual risk-taking.Methods: Data from the 2010 Minnesota Student survey for alter-native schools (n � 4,586; mean age � 16.9 years; 46% female; 49%students of color; 54% low socioeconomic status) were analyzedusing logistic regression-based path analysis. Sports team participa-tion was assessed with one item regarding participation on schoolteams in the last year, dichotomized as weekly versus non-weeklyparticipation. Six substance use outcomes were examined: cigaretteuse, alcohol use, binge drinking, marijuana use, other drug use (e.g.,cocaine/crack, heroin), and polysubstance use. Four sexual risk-takingoutcomes were assessed: lifetime history of intercourse, multiplepartners, condom nonuse, and partner non-communication. All out-come variables were dichotomized. Indirect effects were simultane-ously estimated for school connectedness (4 items; a � 0.70), adultconnectedness (4 items; a � 0.70), friend connectedness (singleitem), and emotional distress (4 items; a � 0.84) to determine theinfluence of individual mediators on relationships between sportsteam participation and each outcome. Covariates included age, gen-

S77Poster Abstracts / 52 (2013) S21–S113