Adolescent Sexual Health

 Introduction:

 There is a growing need for sex education in general and awareness about the services that prevent, diagnose, and treat STIs and other sexual health-related conditions for adolescents worldwide. Supporting adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health also means empowering the youth to know about and exercise their rights fully- including the right to consent regarding intercourse and delay or refuse to be a part of any marital institution. Working with the ministries, NGOs, and other partners, the Government of India enforces several awareness programs; sensitization drives about contraception, its temporary and permanent methods, factors affecting fertility or infertility, and adolescent sexual health. Several NGOs work in the field of adolescent sexual health ARSH and try providing sex education to the youth of tomorrow.  

Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (AFHC): an initiative by the Government of India:

Under its facility-based approach, Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) emphasizes developing Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (AFHC). The Adolescent Reproductive Sexual Health (ARSH) Clinic was established in 2006 under RCH II to provide counselling on sexual and reproductive health issues.

AFHC encompasses a wide range of clinical and counseling services on adolescent health issues ranging from Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) to Nutrition, Substance Abuse, Injuries and Violence (including Gender-Based Violence), Non-Communicable Diseases, and Mental Health, all of which are now under the RKSK umbrella. At AFHCs located at Primary Health Centers (PHCs), Community Health Centers (CHCs), District Hospitals (DHs), and Medical Colleges, trained service providers such as MOs, ANMs, and Counsellors provide adolescent-friendly health services.

The AFHC specifies facility-based clinical and counselling services for adolescents as a vital ‘friendly’ component. They are deemed to be equitable, accessible to the youth from all strata of our multi-varied society, youth appropriate, effective in keeping up with the growing need and behavioural pattern changes in adolescents, and comprehensive in understanding the correct approach to take regarding the promotive, preventive and curative aspects of adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health problems.

 Counselling and its Role in Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health:

For efficient implementation of welfare drives and ARSH sensitization activities, counselling services in clinics, schools, and community settings must be strengthened and increased. While the Government of India hired and educated many female and male counsellors dedicated to adolescent health during the first three years, vacancies remained in practically every district; this was especially true for male counselors. Furthermore, without an adequate monitoring system, the quality and content of the counselling delivered could not be measured. However, there is evidence that counselors’ enormous caseloads at AFHCs and a lack of connectivity in remote locations harm their outreach services.

Understanding Adolescent Sexual Health in India:

In the patriarchal Indian society, it is not surprising that Adolescent Sexual Health education suffers a setback. Due to our cultural barriers and social taboos, we refuse to engage in conversations about the importance of sexual education and ways to maintain good sexual health in adolescents. It is very common for adolescents to have an increased sex drive or curiosity about their sexual organs. However, it is hardly of any benefit if we ask them to silence their thoughts and give leeway to illogical and, at times, dangerous imaginations and unscientific practices. The cases of rape, molestation, and other sexual offenses committed by adolescents are piled up in every juvenile justice board. In such circumstances, the hour’s need is to focus on adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health and provide a free space for youth to put up their stance regarding sex, sex education, and sexuality. 

Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health: a Global Perspective:

The UN General Assembly Special Session on Children in 2002 recognised the need to develop and implement health policies and programmes for adolescents that promote their physical and mental health; in 2003, the Committee on the Rights of the Child issued a General Comment recognising the special health and development needs and rights of adolescents and young people. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the right to health—a concept included in various international agreements such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international Millennium Development Goals, which include indicators to reduce pregnancy rates among 15–19 year olds, increase HIV knowledge, and reduce HIV spread among young people—are two additional supporting instruments.

Conclusion:

With an effective method to generate awareness about adolescent sexual and reproductive health, these global challenges can be overcome, especially in the third world and conflict zones. Various political, economical, and socio-cultural barriers exist that delay and restrict the delivery of such information through awareness and sensitization programs to the youth. The healthcare workers whose job is to make the youth aware of their sexual and reproductive health often fail to do so because of the societal judgment and the youth’s inappropriate mindset engraved in the society. Every adolescent can’t meet a doctor and take medical advice, especially in places that suffer severely due to the lack of resources and connectivity. However, as the population nears an explosion, we must consider how important it is to generate awareness regarding adolescent sexual and reproductive health and overcome the global challenges that we face daily, starting from homes, schools, and workplaces.