Initiating adolescent friendly health clinics through primary health facilities

The document discusses SNEHA's initiative, EHSAS (Empowerment, Health, and Sexuality of Adolescents), to enhance adolescent-friendly health services through public health facilities in Mumbai and Thane. It outlines the challenges adolescents face in accessing these services, including a lack of awareness, societal stigma, and insufficiently equipped health systems. To address these barriers, the program employs strategies such as appreciative inquiry and capacity-building workshops with public health workers.

The initiative emphasizes creating awareness among adolescents and parents about available health services, fostering a positive perception of health posts, and improving access to essential interventions like anemia screening, iron-folic acid supplementation, and reproductive health talks. The project achieved significant outcomes, including 1,600 adolescents availing health services and the development of protocols for adolescent-friendly clinics.

Key challenges identified include resistance to using public health facilities, insufficient training for health workers on adolescent-specific needs, and difficulties in record maintenance due to migration. Proposed solutions involve community engagement, collaborations with public health departments, and employing peer educators to support sensitive training topics.

The initiative highlights the importance of sustained engagement between health workers, adolescents, and parents, as well as systematic monitoring and participatory planning to institutionalize adolescent-friendly services. It concludes that addressing these challenges can significantly strengthen health systems and improve adolescent health outcomes.