scholarly journals Adolescent access to health services in fragile and conflict-affected contexts: the case of the Gaza Strip

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bassam Abu Hamad ◽  
Nicola Jones ◽  
Ingrid Gercama
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Adolescent Health ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Gaza Strip ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
The Gaza Strip

Abstract Background: Enjoyment of physical and mental health is not only recognized as a human right but also as an integral part of development, as reflected in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 – to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. The rapid physical, psychosocial and behavioural changes that take place during adolescence have a strong influence on the rest of a person’s life course, so investments in adolescent health services constitute a unique opportunity to reap lifelong and inter-generational dividends. Yet the evidence base on adolescents’ access to health services, particularly in conflict-affected contexts, remains thin. This article explores adolescents’ access to health services in the Gaza Strip, and their experiences and perceptions of those services. Methods: The article draws on mixed-methods research in the Gaza Strip in 2016 and 2017 involving 240 adolescents and 65 service providers, combining a QuickTapSurvey,™ key informant interviews, peer-to-peer research and individual in-depth interviews. Results: The findings underscore that gender norms—especially those pertaining to adolescent girls’ sexual purity––shape adolescent health in multiple ways. Girls face increasing restrictions on their mobility and social interactions, leaving them with limited opportunities for leisure or exercise, socializing with peers or seeking health (including mental health) services. Adolescent boys in Gaza do not face the same restrictions, but given the multiple political, economic and familial stressors, they are at high risk of substance abuse and involvement in peer violence. Moreover, our findings suggest that a range of socioeconomic, cultural and structural barriers prevent adolescents in Gaza from accessing quality and appropriate health care. Study participants cited the main challenges as an absence of preventive adolescent health initiatives and limited information on sexual and reproductive health, as well as drug shortages, high treatment costs, and negative interactions with service providers. Conclusions: The article highlights the importance of (1) designing and implementing conflict-sensitive and age- and gender-appropriate adolescent services and information; (2) promoting preventive services targeted at adolescents; and (3) improving service provider awareness of adolescents’ specific health needs in all contexts.

scholarly journals Adolescent access to health services in fragile and conflict-affected contexts: The case of the Gaza Strip

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bassam Abu Hamad ◽  
Nicola Jones ◽  
Ingrid Gercama
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Adolescent Health ◽  
Adolescent Girls ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Gaza Strip ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
The Gaza Strip

Abstract Background Enjoyment of physical and mental health is not only recognized as a human right but also as an integral part of development, as reflected in Sustainable Development Goal 3 – to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. The rapid physical and psychosocial changes that take place during adolescence have a strong influence on the rest of a person’s life course, so investments in adolescent health services constitute a unique opportunity to reap inter-generational dividends. Yet the evidence base on adolescents’ access to health services, particularly in conflict-affected contexts, remains thin. This article explores adolescents’ access to health services in the Gaza Strip, and their experiences and perceptions of those services. Methods The article draws on mixed methods research in the Gaza Strip conducted in 2016 and 2017 as part of the Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence research programme. Data were collected from 240 male and female adolescents combining in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and a tablet-based survey. This study also draws on a participatory action pilot project engaging 12 boys and 23 adolescent girls aged 15–19 years old. Results The findings underscore that gender norms—especially those pertaining to adolescent girls’ sexual purity––shape adolescent health in multiple ways. Girls face increasing restrictions on their mobility, leaving them with limited opportunities for leisure or exercise, socializing with peers or seeking health services and information. Adolescent boys in Gaza do not face the same restrictions, but given the multiple political, economic and familial stressors, they are at high risk of substance abuse including smoking and involvement in peer violence. Moreover, our findings suggest that a range of socioeconomic, cultural and structural barriers prevent adolescents in Gaza from accessing quality and appropriate health care. Study participants cited the main challenges being an absence of preventive adolescent health initiatives and limited information on sexual and reproductive health, as well as drug shortages, high treatment costs, and inappropriate interactions with service providers. Conclusions The article highlights the importance of designing and implementing conflict-sensitive and age- and gender-appropriate adolescent services and information and promoting preventive services targeted at adolescents.

ICTS and Their Role in Health Promotion

2011 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Motshedisi B. Sabone ◽  
Keitshokile D. Mogobe ◽  
Tiny G. Sabone
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Level Of Effort

This chapter presents findings of mini-survey that utilized an exploratory descriptive design to examine the accessibility, affordability, acceptability, and utility of ICTs with specific reference to health promotion for selected rural communities. Specifically, the study focused on access to radio, television, mobile phone, and Internet services at a level of effort and cost that is both acceptable to and within the means of a large majority in a given village. The findings indicate that ICTs gadgets explored have opened up possibility for health services and information to reach even people in the rural areas. Ultimately, access affects the general well-being of individuals. One of the major initiatives under the umbrella of health is improving access to health services and information; and this covers among other things, expanding the delivery of health information through the radio and television. This study confirms breakthrough in this respect. Challenges that accompany the use of these ICT gadgets include no connectivity in some areas and lack of training to use them.

Consumer-Level Perceived Access to Health Services and Its Effects on Vulnerability and Health Outcomes

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily C. Tanner ◽  
Richard J. Vann ◽  
Elvira Kizilova
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Perception ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Close Link ◽  
Perceived Vulnerability ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Perceived Access ◽  
The Relationship

Access to health services affects the well-being of millions of consumers. Although the topic of health-related access is regularly featured in popular and academic conversations, these conversations primarily concentrate on objective or situational access factors. This research focuses instead on consumers’ subjective perception of access to better appreciate how personally experienced service availability and ease of access jointly determine consumers’ access perceptions. The authors find that perceived access to health services (PAHS) offers insight into the relationships between access, perceived health vulnerability, and overall health. Through scale development and a series of three theory-testing studies, this work demonstrates the close link between PAHS and perceived vulnerability (Study 1), connects this relationship to overall health (Studies 1–3), and establishes behavioral changes associated with access-vulnerability concerns (Study 2). Moreover, Study 3 finds evidence for a “muting” effect of health system distrust on the relationship between PAHS and perceived vulnerability as well as an “amplifying” effect of health motivation on the relationship between perceived vulnerability and overall health. Together, these studies illustrate PAHS’s relevance for explaining consumer vulnerability and overall health.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Nepal’s Free Health Care Scheme from Health System Perspective: A Qualitative Analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (41) ◽  
pp. 372-377
Author(s):  
Shiva Raj Adhikari ◽  
Diksha Sapkota ◽  
Arjun Thapa ◽  
Achyut Raj Pandey
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Care Program ◽  
Natural Setting ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
System Perspective ◽  
Geographical Access ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Free Health Care

Background: Access to high quality medicines is often considered as one of the main obstacle in achieving health for all. With the objective of increasing access to health services of poor segment of population, government of Nepal has implemented free health care program. However, there is strong need for evaluating the performance and coverage of free health Care scheme. In this context, this study aims to provide better understanding on the implementation status of free health care scheme in context of Nepal.Methods: It is a qualitative study conducted in 7 districts of Nepal. Total of 14 focused group discussion were conducted among service providers and service users. All the discussions were carried in neutral and natural setting making sure that each of participants feels free to express their opinion. Focused group discussions were transcribed, translated into English, coded and analyzed manually.Results: Participants shared that free health care has contributed positively in making essential health services reachable, affordable and accessible to all specially benefiting poor segment of population. However, multitude of factors like geographical access, perception of community people towards health services, availability of medicines, laboratory services and human resources come into play determining the utilization of health services. Service providers recommended that there need to be improvements in procurement and supply system for uninterrupted supply of services.Conclusions: Despite having some problems in availability of medicines, human resource and diagnostic services, free health care has improved access to health services specially for poor population. Decentralizing the procurement process can be one promising option to overcome the inappropriate supply of medicines.Keywords: Access to medicine; financial risk; free health care; Nepal; poor.

Gypsy/Traveller, migrant, and refugee children

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Condon ◽  
Julie Mytton
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Refugee Children ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Special Circumstances ◽  
Health Programmes

Children living in special circumstances due to migration or refugee status, or being of Gypsy, Roma, or Traveller ethnicity, have extra health needs and difficulty in accessing universal and specialist health services. Migrant, refugee, and Traveller children belong to diverse ethnic and social groups, but share characteristics which increase their need for targeted health promotion. All groups are subsections of the population with poor self-reported health and access to health services, and higher numbers of dependent children. It is well recognized that they experience discrimination and social exclusion which adversely impacts health. There is overlap between groups, for example, refugees are migrants who have left their country of origin to avoid persecution, and Roma are migrants who are of Gypsy ethnicity. This chapter identifies the reasons why children from these groups require focused health promotion; it summarizes their health needs, describes interventions to improve their physical and mental health through the child health programmes, and discusses factors that influence their ability to access preventive services.

scholarly journals Barriers and Facilitators to Accessing Health Services: A Qualitative Study Amongst People with Disabilities in Cameroon and India

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 1126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Zuurmond ◽  
Islay Mactaggart ◽  
Nanda Kannuri ◽  
Gudlavalleti Murthy ◽  
Joseph Oye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
People With Disabilities ◽  
Personal Factors ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Access To Health

Background: Article 25 of the UNCRPD stipulates the right of people with disabilities to the highest attainable standard of health, and the timely uptake of appropriate health and rehabilitation services. This study seeks to explore the factors which influence access to health care among adults with disabilities in Cameroon and India. Methods: A total of 61 semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of adults with vision, hearing or musculoskeletal impairments, using data from an earlier cross-sectional disability survey. In addition, 30 key informants were interviewed to provide contextual information about the local services and context. Results: Key themes included individual-level factors, understanding and beliefs about an impairment, and the nature of the impairment and interaction with environmental factors. At the community and household level, key themes were family dynamics and attitudes, economic factors, social inclusion and community participation. Intersectionality with gender and age were cross-cutting themes. Trust and acceptability of health service providers in India and poor understanding of referral processes in both countries were key service-level themes. Conclusions: The interaction of environmental and personal factors with the impairment and their levels of participation and inclusion in community structures, all contributed to the take up of services. This study illustrated the need for a multi-faceted response to improve access to health services for people with disabilities.

ICTS and Their Role in Health Promotion

2012 ◽  
pp. 211-224
Author(s):  
Motshedisi B. Sabone ◽  
Keitshokile D. Mogobe ◽  
Tiny G. Sabone
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Level Of Effort

This chapter presents findings of mini-survey that utilized an exploratory descriptive design to examine the accessibility, affordability, acceptability, and utility of ICTs with specific reference to health promotion for selected rural communities. Specifically, the study focused on access to radio, television, mobile phone, and Internet services at a level of effort and cost that is both acceptable to and within the means of a large majority in a given village. The findings indicate that ICTs gadgets explored have opened up possibility for health services and information to reach even people in the rural areas. Ultimately, access affects the general well-being of individuals. One of the major initiatives under the umbrella of health is improving access to health services and information; and this covers among other things, expanding the delivery of health information through the radio and television. This study confirms breakthrough in this respect. Challenges that accompany the use of these ICT gadgets include no connectivity in some areas and lack of training to use them.

scholarly journals Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Palestinian Nursing Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abu-El-Noor NI ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Gaza Strip ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Anxiety Levels ◽  
The Gaza Strip

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic became a global pandemic in early 2020. The pandemic has many impacts on people’s live posing a threat to their physical and mental health. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Palestinian nursing students residing in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. Materials and Methods: A convenience sample of 345 nursing students from the Islamic University of Gaza completed on line questionnaire packet that included demographic data and the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7). Results: Results from this study revealed that most of our participants were females (79.1%), single (82.3%), not working (90.4%) and having no chronic disease (94.8%). Variant levels of anxiety were reported by participants with 34.5% of them having mild, 31% moderate and 19.1% severe levels of anxiety. Levels of anxiety reported in this study were not impact by any study variables such as age, sex, study year, etc. Conclusions and Implications for Practice: The results of this study revealed high levels of anxiety among nursing students. The closure of the universities, the new experience of e-learning along with the multi-stressors already prevailing in the Gaza Strip have contributed to this high level of anxiety. Universities and the health care system in the Gaza Strip should pay attention to reduce anxiety levels among students. This could be approached by providing online training courses or setting channels of one-to-one online or phone counseling for students to alleviate negative psychological effects and to enhance mental health of students.

A Practical Guide to Caries Prevention in Children

Dental Update ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (10) ◽  
pp. 849-853
Author(s):  
Mishaal Rashid ◽  
Amy Ellis ◽  
Chris Deery
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Clinical Relevance ◽  
Dental Health ◽  
Caries Prevention ◽  
Large Impact ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
The World

Caries is one of the most common diseases in the world and it is mostly preventable. Caries can have a large impact on a child's physical, social and mental health. There are a number of clinical interventions available to prevent caries and this article provides a summary of the general guidelines and tips on their implementation in relation to caries prevention in children. CPD/Clinical Relevance: This article highlights the importance of caries prevention and the relevant interventions, especially in the context of limited access to health services. These guidelines can be beneficial for all dental health professionals.

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