Adolescent Reproductive Health Care Research Articles

Adolescent reproductive health care services: knowledge, perspectives, and challenges among service providers in Makurdi, Benue State Nigeria.

Adolescence is a phase of life characterized by several reproductive health challenges that require support to navigate. However, access to adolescent and youth-friendly health service (AYFHS) centers to provide this support is limited. Perspective of healthcare workers (HCW) towards understanding the challenges to service provision has not been systematically documented. This study therefore documents the perspectives of HCWs on the types of services accessed by adolescents, and associated challenges in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. The facility-based descriptive qualitative study used an in-depth interview guide among program officers in the 11 youth-friendly health centers. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed thematically. The provision of HIV prevention services and AYFHS was appropriate while adolescents have preferences for facilities where their confidentiality is protected, and other needs are met. Reported challenges were lack of privacy, high cost of transportation to facilities, high staff attrition, poor awareness of the facilities and services, and parental consent. Suggestions for improvement included prolonged retention of youth-friendly trained staff, better client confidentiality, and economic empowerment of the adolescents to access services when needed. While the providers' perspective on AYFHS for adolescents was positive, related challenges were also identified. Government and other stakeholders should collaborate to ensure the right environment for accessibility and utilization of AYFHS.

Exploring primary care physician biases in adolescent contraceptive counseling

Objective(s)While previous literature has shown clinician bias in adult contraceptive counseling, less is known on the biases clinicians may exhibit when counseling adolescents about contraception. Our study aimed to describe long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) counseling and prescribing practices of adolescent-serving clinicians. Study designThis study used a cross-sectional discrete choice experiment mixed methods design. We sent a survey containing vignettes and items pertaining to demographics and beliefs to a convenience sample of adolescent-serving clinicians across the United States. ResultsOf 296 clinicians, 80% were in pediatrics, and had geographic, practice setting, gender, and racial diversity. Most clinicians reported being up-to-date with current literature regarding contraception. Sixty-eight percent of respondent’s practices administer contraceptive injections, but only 17% place intrauterine devices (IUDs). Of those who do insert IUDs, nearly half inserted five or fewer within the last year. Patients’ younger age and Hispanic ethnicity were associated with lower odds, and history of pregnancy was associated with higher odds, of clinicians’ recommending LARC. Across all vignettes, the top five reasons clinicians chose their first-choice method for the patient were adherence or compliance, efficacy, side effects, patient age, and reversibility. Conclusion(s)Clinicians often recommend contraceptives based on adherence, efficacy, and age, and we found younger age, minoritized race or ethnicity, and history of pregnancy were all associated with LARC recommendations, indicating potential biases against teen parents and assumptions about adolescents’ priorities. This may impede the provision of patient-centered contraceptive counseling for adolescents, and highlights the need for improved education and practice changes post-Dobbs. ImplicationsWe found that clinicians demonstrated several biases in how they provide contraceptive recommendations to adolescent patients. These biases were often associated with their personal beliefs and experiences. Our findings can guide the development of future interventions aimed at improving adolescent reproductive health counseling and care delivery in primary care settings.

Adolescent reproductive health in a post- Dobbs landscape: a review.

To summarize notable recent research in adolescent reproductive health, particularly with respect to a rapidly changing legal landscape surrounding health services that significantly impact adolescent health. Approval of the first over-the-counter contraceptive pill represented a major advance in adolescent reproductive health, which relied on research regarding its safety, efficacy, and potential to increase access for vulnerable groups. Despite this approval, disparities persist in equitable contraceptive access for adolescents of color and those from sexual and gender identity minorities. Legal changes in access to abortion care and parental involvement in reproductive health decision-making have presented significant challenges for young people across the U.S. Recent research points to the promise of telehealth abortion care and parental acceptance of confidentiality in adolescent reproductive healthcare. Misinformation remains a barrier to advancing adolescent reproductive health and points to continued opportunities for providers to create evidence-based online content. In this review, we discuss recent research regarding adolescent reproductive health and laws impacting the reproductive health of adolescents. As the legal landscape evolves, further research surrounding the effect of policy changes that both expand and restrict access to adolescent reproductive health services will be critical to advancing adolescent health.

Incorporating Cardiovascular Risk Assessment into Adolescent Reproductive Health and Primary Care Visits

Study ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the usability and feasibility of incorporating a cardiovascular risk assessment tool into adolescent reproductive health and primary care visits. Design, Setting, and ParticipantsWe recruited 60 young women ages 13-21 years to complete the HerHeart web-tool in 2 adolescent clinics in Atlanta, GA.Main Outcome Measures: Participants rated the tool's usability via the Website Analysis and Measurement Inventory (WAMMI, range 0-95) and their perceived 10-year and lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) on a visual analog scale (range 0-10). Participants’ perceived risk, blood pressure, and body mass index were measured at baseline and 3 months after enrollment. Health care providers (HCP, n = 5) completed the WAMMI to determine the usability and feasibility of incorporating the HerHeart tool into clinical practice. ResultsAdolescent participants and HCPs rated the tool's usability highly on the WAMMI with a median of 79 (interquartile range [IQR] 65, 84) and 76 (IQR 71, 84). At the baseline visit, participants’ median perceived 10-year risk of a heart attack was 1 (IQR 0, 3), and perceived lifetime risk was 2 (IQR 0, 4). Immediately after engaging with the tool, participants’ median perceived 10-year risk was 2 (IQR 1, 4.3), and perceived lifetime risk was 3 (IQR 1.8, 6). Thirty-one participants chose to set a behavior change goal, and 12 participants returned for follow-up. Clinical metrics were similar at the baseline and follow-up visits. ConclusionHerHeart is acceptable to young women and demonstrates potential for changing risk perception and improving health habits to reduce risk of CVD. Future research should focus on improving retention in studies to promote cardiovascular health within reproductive health clinics.

Healthcare workers’ delivery of adolescent responsive sexual and reproductive healthcare services: an assessment in Plateau state, Nigeria

BackgroundAdolescents should have access to high quality and responsive sexual and reproductive health, however, it is unclear to what extent the national policy on health and development of adolescent is implemented by health care workers in Plateau State. This study assessed the general availability of sexual and reproductive health services, the delivery of responsive adolescent sexual and reproductive health services and health care worker?s understanding of what constitutes adolescent responsive sexual and reproductive health services.MethodsUsing a cross sectional design, we interviewed 409 health care workers selected through a multistage sampling technique, across six Local Government Areas of Plateau State, Nigeria using an interviewer-administered survey questionnaire.ResultsThe most available sexual and reproductive health services was antenatal and delivery care (69.2%), contraception 25.9% and 14.9% reported post abortion care. Only 1.2% indicated the availability of the four recommended essential sexual and reproductive health services (counselling/information provision, provision of contraceptives, testing/treatment for sexually transmitted infection (STI) /HIV and post abortion care) in their facilities. Little over half (58.4%) felt their facilities were adequate in meeting the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent and this was associated with delivery of post abortion care (AOR=3.612; CI=1.886-6.917; p = .001) and providing sexual and reproductive health services to adolescents without parental consent (AOR=3.612; CI=1.886-6.917; p = .001). Most health care workers had poor understanding of adolescent responsiveness of sexual and reproductive health services, understanding better among health workers who provided services without parental consent and in a separate room for privacy and confidentiality.ConclusionWe conclude that adolescent sexual and reproductive health services is not yet as stipulated in the national policy in Plateau State, Nigeria and in general, health workers have poor understanding of what it means to provide adolescent-responsive services.

135. Piloting a Quality Improvement Package for Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Care in Community Health Centers: Getting to Quality for Teens (Q4T)

135. Piloting a Quality Improvement Package for Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Care in Community Health Centers: Getting to Quality for Teens (Q4T)

The Pediatrician in the Post-Roe Landscape

This Viewpoint discusses adolescent and young adult reproductive health care in a post-Roe environment.

Quality Initiative to Increase Delivery of Adolescent Hospital-Based Reproductive Health Care.

Hospitals are an important nontraditional setting in which to address adolescent reproductive health. However, opportunities for intervention are frequently missed, especially for boys and patients hospitalized for noningestion complaints. Our global aim was to increase delivery of reproductive health care to adolescents hospitalized through our children's hospital Pediatric Hospital Medicine service. We performed 2 quality improvement intervention cycles: (1) provider education and monthly reminder e-mails and (2) an automated electronic health record (EHR) adolescent history and physical note template with social history prompts while discontinuing reminder e-mails. The primary outcome measure was sexual history documentation (SHD). Secondary measures were sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing and contraception provision. Statistical process control charts were used to analyze effectiveness of interventions. From July 2018 through June 2019, 528 Primary Hospital Medicine encounters were included in this study and compared with published baseline data on 150 encounters. Control charts revealed a special cause increase in SHD from 60% to 82% overall, along with 37% to 73% for boys and 57% to 80% for noningestion hospitalizations. Increased SHD correlated with cycle 1 and was maintained through cycle 2. Percent STI testing significantly increased but did not shift or trend toward special cause variation. Contraception provision, length of stay, and patient relations consultations were not affected. The interventions were successful in increasing SHD, including among boys and noningestion hospitalizations. The EHR enhancement maintained these increases after reminder emails were discontinued. Future interventions should specifically address STI testing and provision of contraception.

Implementation of Community‑Wide Initiatives Designed to Reduce Teen Pregnancy: Measuring Progress in a 5‑Year Project in 10 Communities.

Community-wide initiatives (CWI) to prevent teen pregnancy were implemented in 10 communities in the USA. The CWI supported the implementation of evidence-based teen pregnancy interventions (EBIs) and implementation of best practices for adolescent reproductive health care. Implementation was supported through mobilizing communities, educating stakeholders, and strategies to promote health equity. We assessed indicators of progress of the CWI for the following five project components (data collected from 2010 to 2015): community mobilization, stakeholder education, working with diverse communities, evidence-based interventions, and increasing access to clinical services and the potential contributions of training and technical assistance. Communities engaged multiple stakeholder groups to contribute to planning, community outreach and education, and partnership development and used multiple dissemination methods to share information on adolescent reproductive health needs and teen pregnancy prevention strategies. The amount of training and technical assistance from state- and community-based organizations was associated with increased numbers of youth receiving EBIs and increased provision of contraceptives. The number of health centers implementing best practices for adolescent reproductive health services increased; conducting sexual health assessments, offering hormonal contraception or IUD, and offering quick start of IUDs were associated with increases in long-acting reversible contraception utilization. These findings demonstrate that scaled prevention efforts can occur with adequate support including training and technical assistance and community awareness and engagement in the process. The findings raise important questions for understanding what factors contribute to successful community-wide implementation of EBIs and health center best practices for contraceptive access and whether these lead to reductions in teen pregnancies in highly impacted communities.

Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Care Service Availability and Delivery in Public Health Facilities of Plateau State Nigeria.

To assess the availability, accessibility, appropriateness and quality of adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) services in primary health care (PHC) facilities in Plateau State, Nigeria, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 230 PHC facilities across the three senatorial zones of Plateau state. Primary data were obtained through face-to-face interviews with heads of facilities from December 2018 to May 2019. An adapted questionnaire from the World Health Organization (WHO) was used, covering five domains, to ascertain the extent that ASRH services were available and provided. Very few PHC facilities in the state had space (1.3%) and equipment (12.2%) for ASRH services. The proportion of PHC facilities offering counselling on sexuality was 11.3%, counselling on safe sex was 17%, counselling on contraception was 11.3% and management of gender-based violence was 3%. Most facilities were not operating at convenient times for adolescents. Only 2.6% PHC facilities had posters targeted at ASRH and just 7% of the PHCs had staff trained on ASRH. These findings underscore that the majority of PHC facilities surveyed in Plateau State, Nigeria, lacked dedicated space, basic equipment, and essential sexual and reproductive health care services for ASRH, which in turn negatively affect general public health and specifically, maternal health indices in Nigeria. Structural changes, including implementation of policy and adequate additional training of healthcare workers, are necessary to effectively promote ASRH.

EFFECTIVE OF INTERVENTION SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE SITUATION OF REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE AMONG ADOLESCENT GIRLS IN A LUOI DISTRICT, THUA THIEN HUE PROVINCE

Objectives: To describe the knowledge, attitudes, practices of reproductive health care among adolescent girls in A Luoi district, Thua Thien Hue province and to identify the related factors to reproductive health care in adolescent girls. To assess the results of intervention solutions of reproductive health care in adolescent girls. Methods: A cross-sectional study design. A study design for community intervention comparision with control group. Results: The percentage of adolescents with not good knowledge, attitudes and practices on reproductive health care has accounted for fairly high as respectively: 85.9%, 73.9%, 72.9%. There is an a relationship between education level, adolescent stage with general knowledge on adolescent reproductive health care (p < 0.05). There is a relationship between ethnicity, education level, adolescent stage with the general attitude on adolescent reproductive health care (p < 0.05). There is a relationship between knowledge, attitude, education level, adolescent stage, economic condition, the condition of the family living at the percentage of general practice on adolescent reproductive health care (p < 0.05). The effective of intervention: Good knowlegde increase from 10% to 24.1%. Good attitude increase from 16.7% to 61.4%. Good practice increase from 27.1% to 42.9%. The effective of intervention: change knowlegde: 21.6%, change attitude: 54.2%, change practice: 34.6%. Conclusion: There is need to enhance the communication and education reproductive health for aldolescent girls and to enhance communication knowlegde and skills for reproductive health staff. Keywords: adolescents, get married early, reproductive health.

Negotiating social norms, the legacy of vertical health initiatives and contradicting health policies: a qualitative study of health professionals’ perceptions and attitudes of providing adolescent sexual and reproductive health care in Arusha and Kilimanjaro region, Tanzania

ABSTRACT Background Adolescents in Tanzania are at risk of many health problems attributed to limited access to quality sexual and reproductive health services. Health professionals are a crucial part of service delivery, and their perspective on providing care is important in understanding the barriers that hamper access to sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents. Better understanding these barriers will support the development of more effective interventions. This paper explores these perspectives in view of the health-policy context that surrounds them. Objective This study has aimed to explore and understand health professionals’ perceptions and attitudes regarding the provision of adolescent sexual and reproductive health care in a selected national sexual and reproductive health programme in the Arusha region and Kilimanjaro region, Tanzania. Methods A qualitative cross-sectional interview design was applied. Sixteen in-depth interviews were conducted with health professionals and community health workers. Data was analysed following inductive thematic analysis. Results Four main themes are identified in the data: concern about the stigma directed towards adolescents; over-medicalisation of services; difficulty involving adolescent males; and ambiguous policies and contradictory messages. The findings suggest that health professionals providing care in the current adolescent sexual and reproductive health programme must navigate the legacy of vertical health programmes as well as contradicting views and messages that are influenced by social norms, by uncertainties about current laws and by statements from political leaders. Conclusions The findings suggest that future research, policies and health programmes should consider the perspectives of health professionals and their challenges in delivering care for adolescents to help improve the understanding of how to effectively and sensitively implement sexual and reproductive health programmes for adolescents.

Emerging Issues in Male Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Care.

Pediatricians are encouraged to address male adolescent sexual and reproductive health on a regular basis, including taking a sexual history, discussing healthy sexuality, performing an appropriate physical examination, providing patient-centered and age-appropriate anticipatory guidance, and administering appropriate vaccinations. These services can be provided to male adolescent patients in a confidential and culturally appropriate manner, can promote healthy sexual relationships and responsibility, can and involve parents in age-appropriate discussions about sexual health.

Needs assessment for gender sensitive reproductive health services for adolescents

Background A dimension of reproductive health services that should be gender sensitive is reproductive health services for adolescents. Objective This study aims to assess needs for gender sensitive reproductive health care services for adolescents. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study on 341 of health care providers for adolescents in health centers and hospitals affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Iran in 2016. The subjects of the study were recruited using a convenience sampling method. The tools for data collection were: (1) a demographic information questionnaire and; (2) a valid and reliable questionnaire to Assess the Needs of Gender-Sensitive Adolescents Reproductive Health Care Services (ANQ-GSARHS) including three sections; process, structure and policy making for the services. Data were analyzed using SPSS 21. Results Three hundred and forty-one health providers with an average working experience of 8.77 ± 5.39 [mean ± standard deviation (SD)] years participated in the study. The results demonstrated the highest scores for educational needs (92.96% ± 11.49%), supportive policies (92.71% ± 11.70%) and then care needs (92.37% ± 14.34%) of the services. Conclusions Providing gender sensitive reproductive health care services for adolescents needs to be reformed as regards processes, structure and policies of the services. However, the gender appropriate educational and care needs as well as supportive policies are the priorities for reform of the services.

Healthcare system indicators associated with modern contraceptive use in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria: evidence from the Performance Monitoring and Accountability 2020 data

BackgroundPublic health literature is replete with evidence on individual and interpersonal indicators of modern contraceptive use. There is, however, limited knowledge regarding healthcare system indicators of modern contraceptive use. This study assessed how the healthcare system influences use of modern contraceptive among women in Ghana, Kenya, and two large population states in Nigeria.MethodsThis study used data from Phase 1 of the Performance Monitoring and Accountability 2020. The analytical sample was limited to women with a need for contraception, defined as women of reproductive age (15 to 49 years) who wish to delay or limit childbirth. Therefore, this analysis consisted of 1066, 1285, and 1955 women from Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya respectively. Indicators of healthcare assessed include user-fees, visit by health worker, type of health facility, multiple perinatal services, adolescent reproductive healthcare, density of healthcare workers, and regularity of contraceptive services. All analyses were conducted with SAS (9.4), with statistical significance set at p < 5%.ResultsThe prevalence of modern contraceptive was 22.7, 33.2, and 68.9% in Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya respectively. The odds of modern contraceptive use were higher among Nigerian women who lived within areas that provide adolescent reproductive healthcare (OR = 2.05; 95% C.I. = 1.05—3.99) and Kenyan women residing in locales with polyclinic or hospitals (OR = 1.91; 1.27—2.88). Also, the odds of contraceptive use were higher among Kenyan women who lived in areas with user-fee for contraceptive services (OR = 1.40; 1.07–1.85), but lower among Ghanaian women residing in such areas (OR = 0.46; 0.23—0.92). Lastly, the odds of modern contraceptive use were higher among women visited by a health-worker visit among women in Ghana (OR = 1.63; 1.11—2.42) and Nigeria (OR = 2.97; 1.56—5.67) than those without a visit.ConclusionThis study found an association between country-specific indicators of healthcare and modern contraceptive use. Evidence from this study can inform policy makers, health workers, and healthcare organizations on specific healthcare factors to target in meeting the need for contraception in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.

A Research Agenda for Emergency Medicine-based Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health.

The objective was to identify key questions for emergency medicine (EM)-based adolescent sexual and reproductive health and to develop an evidence-based research agenda. We recruited national content experts to serve as advisory group members and used a modified Delphi technique to develop consensus around actionable research questions related to EM-based adolescent reproductive and sexual health care. Author subgroups conducted literature reviews and developed the initial list of research questions, which were iteratively refined with advisory members. External stakeholders then independently rated each item for its importance in expanding the evidence base (1=not important to 5=very important) via electronic survey. Our final list of 24 research questions included items that intersected all sexual and reproductive health topics as well as questions specific to human immunodeficiency virus/sexually transmitted infections (HIV/STIs), pregnancy prevention, confidentiality/consent, public health, and barriers and facilitators to care. External stakeholders rated items related to HIV/STI, cost-effectiveness, brief intervention for sexual risk reduction, and implementation and dissemination as most important. We identified critical questions to inform EM-based adolescent sexual and reproductive health research. Because evidence-based care has potential to improve health outcomes while reducing costs associated with HIV/STI and unintended pregnancy, funders and researchers should consider increasing attention to these key questions.

Adolescent Reproductive Health Care: Views and Practices of Pediatric Hospitalists.

Many hospitalized adolescents are at increased risk for pregnancy complications due to an underlying medical condition, however sexual risk assessment is not consistently performed in this setting. While adolescents and their parents are supportive of sexual health discussion in the inpatient setting, a thorough understanding of factors that influence provision of this care among pediatric hospital physicians is lacking. This formative information is needed to facilitate efforts to improve and standardize clinical care provision. Our objective is to assess the frequency and factors that influence the provision of adolescent sexual and reproductive care by pediatric hospitalists. We performed a cross-sectional computerized survey of hospitalists at 5 pediatric hospitals who cared for ≥1 adolescent (14-21 years old) in the past year. Sexual and reproductive care practices were assessed by using a 76-item novel survey informed by the theory of planned behavior. We used descriptive statistics to summarize the data. Sixty-eight pediatric hospitalists participated (49% response rate): 78% were women and 65% were aged <40 years. Most (69%) reported treating >46 adolescents annually, including many who are at an increased risk for pregnancy complications due to teratogenic medication use or a comorbid condition. A majority felt that sexual and reproductive services are appropriate, although many endorsed barriers, including concern about follow-up after emergency contraception (63%) and time constraints (53%). Most reported insufficient knowledge regarding contraception (59%), desired contraception education (57%), and were likely to increase contraceptive provision if provided education (63%). Hospitalists rarely provided condoms or referral for an intrauterine device. Pediatric hospitalists frequently care for adolescents who are at risk for pregnancy complications and generally agree that reproductive care is appropriate in the inpatient setting. With these findings, we highlight the critical need for effective comprehensive reproductive health service interventions that are tailored to address the numerous actionable barriers identified in this study.

237. Healthcare Workers' Attitudes Toward Adolescent Reproductive Healthcare ∼The Case of Cebu City, The Philippines∼

In reproductive healthcare, negative attitudes among healthcare workers sometimes appear toward adolescent clients who have premarital sex, who use contraceptives, and who are sexually active. Such attitudes influence the quality of the services that adolescents can receive. Past studies have found that ideas based on culture, religion, lack of knowledge, and personal values created negative attitudes among healthcare workers. In the Philippines, only a few studies on healthcare workers’ performance have been done and none focus on healthcare workers’ attitudes in adolescent reproductive healthcare. The purpose of this research is to identify healthcare workers’ attitudes toward adolescent reproductive healthcare in Cebu City, the Philippines, factors causing negative attitudes among healthcare workers, and to suggest how to improve the negative attitudes. This research consists of a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods with a concurrent design. As a quantitative method, 65 self-administered questionnaires were distributed (64 were submitted) to healthcare workers who are engaged in maternal and family planning services in barangay health centers (local district health centers). As a qualitative method, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a staff member who works at the city government level and 6 healthcare workers who work for barangay health centers in Cebu City. All the respondents were selected using non-probability purposive sampling. The quantitative data was analyzed by binominal test and correlation analysis using SPSS. The qualitative data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Almost all the healthcare workers surveyed in Cebu City, the Philippines, have positive attitudes toward the overall idea and the practice of promoting adolescent reproductive rights. On the other hand, most of them are hesitant to discuss sexual issues and concerns with adolescent clients and have negative impressions toward adolescents who have sexual experience. This result implies that healthcare workers are fulfilling their responsibilities based on the manual or professional guidelines. However, the actual quality of the services given to adolescents might be failing to provide youth-friendly services, to look at clients on an individual level, or to satisfy the real needs of adolescent clients. From the qualitative analysis, the factors causing the negative attitudes were divided into 2 types: internal factors brought by healthcare workers’ individual issues and external factors in the environment surrounding the healthcare workers. Internal factors include inadequate knowledge of adolescent sexual behavior, lack of interpersonal relations with adolescent clients, and a fear of encouraging adolescents to engage in premarital sex. External factors include ignorance of adolescent clients, parental consent required for minors’ reproductive healthcare, and pressure from the Church. In addition to healthcare workers' knowledge and communication skills, mandatory parental consent for minors and pressure from the Church discourage healthcare workers from providing youth-friendly services.

Implementing Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Clinical Best Practice in the Bronx, New York

PurposeInequitable access to quality adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) care may contribute to the high rate of teen pregnancy in the Bronx, New York. Bronx Teens Connection (BxTC), a community-wide intervention, sought to increase the number of ASRH best practices implemented and the number of females 12–19 years old receiving services by health centers in the Bronx. MethodsTo promote best practices, BxTC provided training and technical assistance to partnering health centers from 2011 to 2014. Health center staff completed a 26-item survey annually to document clinic practices and service utilization. Significance of changes was assessed with paired t tests. ResultsBxTC provided 285 hours of training and technical assistance to 12 partnering health centers. Eight health centers consistently completed the survey. Of the possible 31 ASRH best practices, the average number implemented increased from 23 in 2011 to 28 in 2014. Increases in unduplicated female adolescent patients were observed among Hispanics/Latinas (p = .026) and all females aged 15–17 (p = .035). Contraceptive coverage reported by six of the eight health centers increased among Hispanic/Latinas (32%–55%, p = .006), patients ages 15–17 (33%–53%, p = .005), and patients 18–19 (38%–56%, p = .036). The total number of hormonal implants provided to teens increased from two in 2011 to 173 in 2014. ConclusionsOther jurisdictions may consider prioritizing clinical linkages in order to improve ASRH outcomes by supporting best practices and expanding access to services in the most disinvested neighborhoods.

Sexual and reproductive health in young men in Chile: results of a qualitative studySaúde sexual e reprodutiva de jovens do sexo masculino no Chile: resultados de um estudo qualitativo

RESUMENObjetivoDescribir, a partir de las percepciones de adolescentes y personal de atención de salud, las formas en que los adolescentes varones se relacionan con la atención de salud sexual y reproductiva, las transformaciones percibidas en este ámbito y las estrategias desplegadas por Espacios Amigables para la atención de salud adolescente para acercarse a ellos.MétodosEstudio cualitativo etnográfico en Espacios Amigables para la atención de adolescentes y jóvenes de cinco municipios de la Región Metropolitana de Chile. Se utilizaron las técnicas de entrevistas semiestructuradas (N = 38), grupos de discusión (N = 5) y observación participante.ResultadosSe identifica una falta de perspectiva de masculinidades en la atención de salud sexual y reproductiva en adolescentes, que se percibe como un ámbito enfocado principalmente para el género femenino. La mayoría de los adolescentes varones percibe a los servicios de salud como distantes y acuden principalmente en casos de emergencia. Se identifica una baja asistencia de hombres a servicios de salud sexual y reproductiva en Espacios Amigables ubicados en centros de atención primaria de salud. Sin embargo, aquellos ubicados fuera de estos como, por ejemplo, un centro exclusivo de atención de salud adolescente y servicios integrados en las escuelas, convocan a mayor número de varones.ConclusionesUna mayor oferta de servicios de salud sexual y reproductiva para adolescentes no necesariamente implica un aumento en el acceso de hombres. Para que esto suceda, es importante invitarlos desde temáticas que les resulten de interés, acercar los servicios de salud hacia donde ellos están, potenciar el trabajo intersectorial, e incorporar un enfoque de masculinidades para su atención.