Reproductive health education: a qualitative study of health seeking behaviour of in-school female adolescents

Introduction: adolescents in developing countries are often vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and unplanned pregnancies. It is estimated that about 13 million adolescent girls have unplanned births each year in developing countries. This study examined the scope of the School Health Education Programme (SHEP) and health-seeking behaviours of female adolescents in Junior High School (JHS). Methods: this qualitative research used the narrative approach. Group discussions were conducted among 100 female adolescents aged 12-19 years. Interviews were conducted among five community health workers in five health centres that provide reproductive health services. The in-depth interviews and group discussions were documented, transcribed and analyzed using NVivo 11, whilst thematic analysis was used in analyzing data. Results: the mean age of adolescents was 15.5 years, with 74% reporting having knowledge of STDs. It was observed that the SHEP offers various information on health issues such as menstrual hygiene, STDs, personal hygiene, contraceptives, personal development and unsafe abortion practices. Adolescent reproductive health services were also available in the health centres but patronage was low as a result of perceived negative attitude of health workers and trust. Knowledge on issues of reproductive health is insufficient among JHS female adolescents, with many of them relying on the media and peers for reproductive health support. Conclusion: in this study, female adolescents are generally involved in risky sexual behaviour due to their low level of knowledge on reproductive issues and their unwillingness to patronize available reproductive health services because of the health system and cultural barriers.

Behavior modifying myths practices and effect on health seeking behavior among pregnant Yoruba women, south western Nigeria ­ a cross-sectional study

INTRODUCTION: Cultural practices and beliefs influence and underpin the behavior of women during pregnancy and childbirth; this behavioral change could influence the health-seeking behavior as well as the outcome of pregnancy. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to determine the behavior modifying myths among pregnant Yoruba women and their sources. METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among 250 pregnant Yoruba women attending the antenatal clinics of Bowen University Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso and Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso. A structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire was undertaken. Consent was sought verbally. RESULTS: The age of the respondents ranged from 15-45 years with a mean age of 27 years (±3.5). Most of the women were married n=239 (95.6%) and primarily Christian n=184 (73.6%). 127 (50.8%) of the women had a tertiary education while only 13 (5.2%) had no formal education. 41 (16.3%) of the respondents being primigravida. Six myths were identified with food taboos being the most common. These were being practiced by 61.2% of the respondents. The reasons given for modifying their behavior varied from warding off ghosts to the delivery of a well-formed child. The most frequent source of information were their relatives (42.4%). CONCLUSION: The practice of the myths was neither influenced by educational status nor religion. The majority of these practices do not have a deleterious effect and did not influence health-seeking behavior or outcome of pregnancy based on the reasons adduced for the practice

Information needs, seeking behavior and work effectiveness of physicians in selected government hospitals in EDO state, Nigeria

Information behaviour and work effectiveness of physicians are vital elements in the day to day practice of physicians in selected government hospitals. This study was carried out to investigate the relationship of between information need, seeking behaviour and work effectiveness of physicians in six government hospitals in Edo State. The objectives of the study include the identification of various health information needs of physicians in government hospitals, finding out their information seeking patterns and examining the level of work effectiveness. The method adopted is the survey design. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data among the respondents. Out of the 620 questionnaire administered 516 (83.2%) were retrieved. The findings revealed that the major health information need of physicians in selected government hospitals in Edo State was information on treatment and tests of patients. The quality of work delivery in terms of commitment and individual care to patients as well as commitment to organization goals is less than satisfactory. There is a significant relationship between information needs and seeking behaviour of physicians and their work effectiveness (r =0.422; p<0.05 and r = 0.090; p<0.05), respectively. It is recommended that physicians in government hospitals in Edo State need to be more pro-active in updating themselves in general medical knowledge

Programmatic Correlates of Maternal Healthcare Seeking Behaviors in Ethiopia

Background: Considerable improvement in maternal healthcare use has been observed since the inception of the health extension program (HEP) in Ethiopia in 2003. Objective: This paper evaluates the influence of HEP outreach strategies on maternal healthcare use. Method: Cross-sectional survey of 2;916 women with children 0 to 11 months from Amhara; Oromiya; Southern Nations; Nationalities and People's; and Tigray regions; obtained between December 2008 and January 2009; were analyzed using regression models to assess the impacts of HEP strategies on maternal health outcomes. Result: The analyses found that communities (i.e.; kebeles) with relatively high prevalence of model families; higher rate of household visits by health extension workers; and higher rate of household visits by voluntary community health workers were associated with improved antenatal care use; tetanus toxoid vaccination coverage; and receiving postnatal care visits; but the strategies were not associated with deliveries attended by health professionals. Conclusion: Although the impacts of HEP strategies on maternal healthcare use were statistically significant; they were not optimum to reach the maternal mortality reduction targets of the government of Ethiopia. The HEP needs to review and strengthen its community based strategies in order to reach its goals