Adolescence is a vital period that sets the stage for the rest of our lives. Due to our social stigmas, adolescent girls and boys don't usually share their health problems with everyone, but obviously we should be concerned about this matter. If we fail to take proper initiatives for our growing generations, then it will create long-term impacts on the future.
Usually, adolescent girls and boys feel shy during puberty, after all we should be concerned and care about it as a family member, or a guardian, or even as a public official. If we take effective initiatives to reduce our inhibitions towards this topic and concentrate prospectively on discussed issues, it's possible to improve the situation regarding our adolescent health care system.
As per a research report titled “Adolescent friendly health corners (AFHCS) in selected government health facilities in Bangladesh: an early qualitative assessment” Bangladesh has limited experience providing Adolescent Friendly Health Services (AFHS); only a few NGOs provide services for adolescents and they tend to be limited to SRH awareness-raising activities and counseling. To address this gap and ensure that adolescents throughout the country have access to SRH services through public health facilities, the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Services Unit of the Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP), with financial and technical assistance from development partners, has begun establishing Adolescent Friendly Health Corners (AFHCs) at selected government facilities at district and union levels.
Currently, there are a number of initiatives to increase the availability of AFHSs in Bangladesh. The government has launched a new National Adolescent Health Program and has also developed the National Strategy for Adolescent Health 2017-2030, which aims to provide improved access to quality health services for adolescents as well as improve awareness and understanding of adolescent health among providers and adolescents.
In addition, there are a growing number of non-governmental organizations and private sector providers offering services aimed at improving the health of young people in Bangladesh. Recently the Bangladeshi government and UNICEF jointly launched a mobile app on Adolescent Health Services. Through this app, adolescents can find necessary information about the various services of the Family Planning Department and multiple IEC/BCC materials. Moreover, adolescents will access the training opportunity on adolescent nutrition, and the opportunity to use effective tools to get adolescent-friendly healthcare services.
AFHSs are needed to address the increases in health risks associated with adolescent growth and development, including mental health and sexual health risks, as well as to increase access to healthcare for adolescents in remote and rural areas. In addition, ensuring that these services are tailored to meet the needs of adolescents will help to increase uptake and ensure positive health outcomes for young people in rural areas. There are a number of problems with adolescent friendly health services in Bangladesh, including the lack of information on adolescent health issues and the low level of awareness about adolescent health problems.
Many health services are not tailored to the needs of adolescents, and there is a lack of adequate physical infrastructure to provide health services to this population. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question since the quality of service in adolescent health services will vary depending on the size, location, and demographics of the area in which they are located. However, some measures that may be necessary to ensure that adolescent health services in Bangladesh are of high quality include providing adequate staffing levels and resources, offering comprehensive services that address the full range of health concerns of adolescents, and ensuring that the services are delivered in a welcoming and safe environment.
Our government should take immediate initiatives to ensure that girls in the CHT region, for example, have access to the same quality of health care as the boys do. This could include providing additional funding for health care centres in the region and encouraging more female health care professionals to work in the area. Additionally, the government should create awareness campaigns to educate people on the importance of health care for girls and the benefits of enrolling in health care centers. The government should also provide incentives such as scholarships or grants to girls who enroll in health care centers.
These initiatives stand to greatly encourage more girls to enroll in health care centres in the CHT region.
There are a few measures and initiatives that can be taken to ensure enrollment in health services in CHT context. First, education and outreach campaigns should be conducted on the importance of health services and their benefits. Additionally, programs that provide incentives to engage with health service providers should be put in place and be promoted among the population. Finally, increased access to health services and improved quality of care should be provided to ensure people in CHT contexts are receiving the care they need.
The barriers and challenges to accessing quality health services from AFHSs in Bangladesh are lack of awareness about adolescents' health issues and reluctance of parents to involve their adolescents in their health care. Additionally, there is a lack of pediatric and adolescent health services in Bangladesh in general, which makes it difficult for adolescents to receive quality health care.
There are several recommendations for establishing Adolescent Friendly Health Services in rural areas of Bangladesh -- these include providing comprehensive and age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health services, providing comprehensive mental health services with special emphasis on adolescent-specific mental health support, ensuring gender-responsive care and respectful treatment, providing safe healthcare services, and establishing trained and knowledgeable personnel for delivery of these services.
Sumit Banik is a public health activist and trainer.
