Abstract
A mixed-methods study was conducted in a Malaysian state beginning with a cross-sectional quantitative study to determine the relationship between clinic characteristics and clinic score of adolescent-friendliness. Subsequently, perceptions of healthcare providers on the facilitating factors for the provision of adolescent-friendly health services were explored qualitatively to support the quantitative findings. Availability of trained healthcare providers, adequate privacy, dedicated adolescent health services team, and adolescent health promotional activities were the clinic characteristics that significantly (p < 0.05) related with clinics’ scores of adolescent-friendliness. The facilitating factors required for adolescent-friendly health services were (1) healthcare providers’ commitment and prioritization towards adolescent-friendly health services; (2) organizational supports; (3) appropriate clinic settings; and (4) external supports for adolescent health promotional activities. The qualitative findings reaffirmed those of the quantitative study on the significant clinic characteristics required for adolescent-friendly health services. This study provides valuable insight for the Ministry of Health to elicit the required facilitating factors to further improve the quality of adolescent health services in Malaysia.
Highlights
Adolescents are defined as a group of population between the ages of 10 and 19 years old [1].In Malaysia, adolescence is further subcategorized into early adolescence (10–14 years), middle adolescence (15–17 years), and late adolescence (18–19 years) [2]
To answer the study questions, researchers used both quantitative and qualitative methods within a single research project. This type of study design allowed us to explain the findings obtained from the quantitative part through qualitative exploration among healthcare providers on the perception and facilitating factors in providing adolescent-friendly health services given the limited availability of validated and reliable questionnaire to be used for this purpose [23]
In multiple linear regression analysis, four characteristics of clinic showed a significant relationship with clinic assessment score on adolescent-friendliness level, which are the availability of highly-trained healthcare providers in adolescent health management; availability of private room or space for counseling session; availability of dedicated team in charge of adolescent health services; and availability promotional activities to promote adolescent health services to adolescents and community
Summary
Adolescents are defined as a group of population between the ages of 10 and 19 years old [1]. In Malaysia, adolescence is further subcategorized into early adolescence (10–14 years), middle adolescence (15–17 years), and late adolescence (18–19 years) [2]. There are about 1.2 billion adolescents in the world today, making up 16% of the world’s population [3]. Malaysia is part of it, consists of 213 million adolescents, and as for Malaysia, the total number of adolescents is 5.5 million or around 18% of its 31 million population [2,4]. The adolescents group is an important category of a country’s demography and is in pressing need of attention, as adolescents are both our present and future leaders, catalyzing economic, social, and cultural development [4]. Public Health 2020, 17, 1341; doi:10.3390/ijerph17041341 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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