Expectations of adolescents to receive reproductive health information and services from health service system: A qualitative study in Bangladesh

Adolescents, aged 10-19 years, constitute one fifth of Bangladesh's total population of 158 million. Similar to adolescents elsewhere, Bangladeshi adolescents also have special sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information and service needs; however, these needs are not adequately addressed by the existing health service system. The present study was conducted to identify adolescents’ expectations of and preferences for receiving SRH information and services. This qualitative study was conducted in six purposively selected areas of Bangladesh using 20 Key Informant Interviews (KII) during September-November 2012. Key informants aged between 15 to 19 years were leaders of youth organizations or class monitors in school. Informants were unmarried and married, males and females, and from rural and urban areas. This study identified that there is a strong need for SRH services for adolescents. Irrespective of their residence and gender, adolescents preferred health service providers to be qualified medical doctors, who are experienced, well-trained and polite. Availability of doctors, maintaining privacy and treatment through counseling were mentioned as their priorities. Both urban and rural adolescents recommended establishing adolescent friendly environment in every government and NGO health service facility. They also asked for gender specific service provider for female and male adolescents. Urban adolescents expressed the need for school health program with provision of school health clinics. On the other hand, rural adolescents recommended for community health workers to raise awareness on adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) issues with parents and families. The adolescents also expected to receive SRH information through mass media, school curriculum, and booklets on adolescent SRH, and peer educator. Addressing the expectations of adolescents will open a new skylight to policy makers to design highly accessible health services for adolescents in BangladeshSouth East Asia Journal of Public Health Vol.7(2) 2017: 19-26

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Exploring the context in which different close-to-community sexual and reproductive health service providers operate in Bangladesh: a qualitative study

Human Resources for Health ◽

10.1186/s12960-015-0045-z ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Ilias Mahmud ◽

Sadia Chowdhury ◽

Bulbul Ashraf Siddiqi ◽

Sally Theobald ◽

Hermen Ormel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reproductive Health ◽

Health Service ◽

Qualitative Study ◽

Sexual And Reproductive Health ◽

Service Providers ◽

Reproductive Health Service ◽

Health Service Providers

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Sexual and reproductive health of Syrian refugee adolescent girls: a qualitative study using focus group discussions in an urban setting in Lebanon

Reproductive Health ◽

10.1186/s12978-021-01178-9 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Rayan Korri ◽

Sabine Hess ◽

Guenter Froeschl ◽

Olena Ivanova

Keyword(s):

Focus Group ◽

Reproductive Health ◽

Sexual Harassment ◽

Qualitative Study ◽

Adolescent Girls ◽

Sexual And Reproductive Health ◽

Urban Setting ◽

Focus Group Discussions ◽

Group Discussions ◽

To Receive

Abstract Background The war in Syria caused the forced displacement of millions of Syrians to neighboring countries. Lebanon is the host country with the largest overall number of Syrian refugees per capita. Adolescent refugee girls experience a unique level of vulnerability during human emergencies and are at increased risk of suffering from poor sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes. We conducted an exploratory qualitative study to learn about the SRH perceptions and experiences of refugee adolescent girls living in Bourj Hammoud, an urban setting in Lebanon. Methods We employed a qualitative design with eight focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted with 40 Syrian Arab and Syrian Kurdish adolescent girls between January and March 2020. Every FGD consisted of five participants aged 13 to 17 years. A semi-structured guide was used covering multiple themes: menstruation, puberty, SRH awareness, and sexual harassment. FGDs were transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings The participants discussed adolescent girls’ health and named six elements of good health, such as healthy activities and self-protection. The majority of the FGD participants reported a lack of awareness about menstruation when they experienced it for the first time and the social stigma associated with menstruation. When defining puberty, they indicated its social link to a girl’s readiness for marriage and her need to become cautious about sexual harassment. Most FGD participants had very poor knowledge of the female reproductive system. Mothers were the most approached persons to receive information on SRH issues; however, the girls indicated a wish to receive advice from specialists in a comfortable and private atmosphere. All the girls reported that either they themselves, or an acquaintance, had experienced some type of sexual harassment. The girls rarely reported those incidents due to fear of being blamed or subjected to mobility restrictions, or forced to drop out of school. Conclusions The findings show the refugee girls need for satisfactory knowledge on SRH issues and interventions to prevent sexual and gender-based violence that take into consideration the complexity of urban settings.

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