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Maternal and Child Health

Reproductive Health

Youth

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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Youth Reproductive Health: Investing In The Future, Frontiers In Reproductive Health Jan 2009

Youth Reproductive Health: Investing In The Future, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

Youth—young people aged 10–24—constitute about a quarter of the world's population. Nearly three-quarters of these young people live in the developing world, and they suffer a disproportionate share of unplanned pregnancies, STIs including HIV, and other reproductive health (RH) problems. Research undertaken by FRONTIERS has shed light on numerous aspects of youth RH, including the information needs of young people, married adolescents, and parents and guardians. Findings from over 20 studies on youth RH provide important lessons about which interventions are effective, what kind of impact is possible, and what approaches have limited impact. This paper focuses on engaging all …


Multisectoral Youth Rh Interventions: The Scale-Up Process In Kenya And Senegal, Stephanie Joyce, Ian Askew, Anta Fall Diagne, Nafissatou J. Diop, Humphres Evelia Jan 2008

Multisectoral Youth Rh Interventions: The Scale-Up Process In Kenya And Senegal, Stephanie Joyce, Ian Askew, Anta Fall Diagne, Nafissatou J. Diop, Humphres Evelia

Reproductive Health

As in many developing countries, young people in Kenya and Senegal (aged 10–20) account for about 25 percent of the population. To ensure their future contribution to their countries, it is of vital strategic importance to safeguard their welfare. Rapid social change in both countries exposes youth to sexual and reproductive health (RH) risks, including unintended pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections including HIV, and sexual violence. Beginning in 1999, the Population Council’s FRONTIERS program conducted operations research studies that tested the feasibility, acceptability, and cost of a public-sector, multisectoral intervention to enhance young people’s RH knowledge and behavior. Study findings showed …


Kenya: Multisectoral Engagement Increases Support For Adolescent Reproductive Health, Frontiers In Reproductive Health Jan 2007

Kenya: Multisectoral Engagement Increases Support For Adolescent Reproductive Health, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

In 1999, FRONTIERS launched the Kenya Adolescent Reproductive Health Project (KARHP), testing a multisectoral approach to improving young people’s reproductive health knowledge and behavior at community, school, and health-facility levels in two pilot districts in the Western Province. The intervention involved three key government ministries—Education, Science and Technology, Health, and Gender, Sports, Culture, and Social Services—with input from community leaders, parents, and youth. Positive findings from the study convinced the three ministries and USAID to institutionalize and scale up selected elements from the pilot project. In 2003, FRONTIERS and PATH began providing technical assistance aimed at mainstreaming and expanding cost-effective …


Senegal: Mainstreaming Adolescent Health: Building On Local Support Systems, Frontiers In Reproductive Health Jan 2007

Senegal: Mainstreaming Adolescent Health: Building On Local Support Systems, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

In 1999, FRONTIERS began a three-year collaboration with the World Health Organization, the Center for Research and Training, the Population Training Group, and the Ministries of Health, Education, and Youth to test the feasibility, effectiveness, and cost of school-, clinic-, and community-based interventions to improve the reproductive health of youth aged 10–19. This adolescent reproductive health (ARH) study showed that the multisectoral, multidisciplinary approach increased knowledge about youth reproductive health among young people, the community, schools, and health-care providers. As noted in this brief, one of the guiding principles of the ARH study was to build sustainability through existing institutions, …


South Africa: Youth Centers: A Costly Way To Provide Reproductive Health Services, Frontiers In Reproductive Health Jan 2007

South Africa: Youth Centers: A Costly Way To Provide Reproductive Health Services, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

Numerous reproductive health programs sponsor youth centers, which provide recreation and job-skills training as a means of attracting young people to seek reproductive health services or information. However, the productivity, cost, and cost-effectiveness of this approach are not clearly documented. In 2000, FRONTIERS conducted a cost analysis as part of a larger study on the effectiveness of three different youth center models in South Africa. The study focused on 8 of the 12 centers included in the larger study, chosen to be representative of each model. All the selected centers offered clinical services, seven also offered reproductive health information or …


Youth Behavioral Risks And Psychosocial Resources In Peru's Alternative-Development Zones, Federico R. Leon, Mary L. Claux Jan 2004

Youth Behavioral Risks And Psychosocial Resources In Peru's Alternative-Development Zones, Federico R. Leon, Mary L. Claux

Reproductive Health

Alternative-development programs are being offered to the population of seven regions of central-eastern Peru involved in coca cropping. The youth of these regions are above the national average in risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, use of alcohol and drugs, and violence against women. This study sought to identify and describe protective factors expected to function as counterforces to such risks; develop reliable indicators and provide a baseline concerning the risk behaviors and protective factors; compare youth by gender, developmental stage, urbanization, and geography to determine whether segmented interventions are required; and recommend specific intervention strategies. The results of …


An Assessment Of Youth Centres In South Africa, Annabel Erulkar, Mags Beksinska, Queen Cebekhulu Jan 2001

An Assessment Of Youth Centres In South Africa, Annabel Erulkar, Mags Beksinska, Queen Cebekhulu

Reproductive Health

Within South Africa there is much interest in expanding youth center programs, particularly in the nongovernmental sector, in part because of recognition that the HIV/AIDS crisis is disproportionately affecting young South Africans. This study was designed to give implementing agencies and donors a broad view of how the youth centers function, who they reach, and the quality of information and services. The assessment underscored the importance of monitoring the performance of programs and understanding who is being reached with what interventions. Youth centers that focus on providing recreational facilities attract a large number of clients, often boys who are repeat …


Youth Talk About Sexuality: A Participatory Assessment Of Adolescent Sexual And Reproductive Health In Lusaka, Zambia, Tamara Fetters, Evans Mupela, Naomi Rutenberg Jan 1998

Youth Talk About Sexuality: A Participatory Assessment Of Adolescent Sexual And Reproductive Health In Lusaka, Zambia, Tamara Fetters, Evans Mupela, Naomi Rutenberg

Reproductive Health

Thirty-six percent of Zambia’s 9 million inhabitants are between 10 and 19 years of age, and most adolescents are sexually active by their mid-teens. Pregnant teenagers have an elevated risk of maternal mortality and complications related to birth. In 1990, at Lusaka’s University Teaching Hospital, self-induced abortion accounted for up to 30 percent of maternal mortality, and one-quarter of these deaths occurred in women under 18 years. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a major health problem for adolescents, yet only a small proportion protect themselves from pregnancy and STIs. There are many barriers to improving the situation, including opposition by …