Kågesten Anna E, Zimmerman Linnea, Robinson Courtland, Lee Catherine, Bawoke Tenaw, Osman Shahd, Schlecht Jennifer
Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD USA.
Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Confl Health. 2017 Nov 14;11(Suppl 1):24. doi: 10.1186/s13031-017-0127-8. eCollection 2017.
Very young adolescents (VYA) in humanitarian settings are largely neglected in terms of sexual and reproductive health (SRH). This study describes the characteristics of VYA aged 10-14 years in two humanitarian settings, focusing on transitions into puberty and access to SRH information.
Data were collected through a cross-sectional survey with Somali VYA residing in the Kobe refugee camp in Ethiopia ( = 406) and VYA from Myanmar residing in the Mae Sot and Phop Phra migrant communities in Thailand ( = 399). The average age was 12 years (about half were girls) in both communities. Participants were recruited using multi-stage cluster-based sampling with probability proportional to size in each site. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the sociodemographic, family, peer, and schooling characteristics and to explore transitions into puberty and access to SRH information.
Most VYA in both sites reported living with both parents; nine in ten reported feeling that their parents/guardians care about them, and over half said that their parents/guardians monitor how and with whom they spend their free time. High proportions in both sites were currently enrolled in school (91.4% Somali, 87.0% from Myanmar). Few VYA, particularly those aged 10-12, reported starting puberty, although one in four Somali indicated not knowing whether they did so. Most girls from Myanmar who had started menstruating reported access to menstrual hygiene supplies (water, sanitation, cloths/pads). No Somali girls reported access to all these supplies. While over half of respondents in both sites reported learning about body changes, less than 20% had learnt about pregnancy and the majority (87.4% Somali, 78.6% from Myanmar) indicated a need for more information about body changes. Parents/guardians were the most common source of SRH information in both sites, however VYA indicated that they would like more information from friends, siblings, teachers and health workers.
This study highlights gaps in SRH information necessary for healthy transitions through puberty and supplies for menstrual hygiene in two humanitarian settings. VYA in these settings expressed closeness to their parents/guardians and the majority were in school. Introducing early SRH interventions that involve parents and educational centers may thus yield promising results, providing VYA with the necessary skills for understanding and dealing with their pubertal and sexual development.
在人道主义环境中，非常年轻的青少年（VYA）在性与生殖健康（SRH）方面基本上被忽视。本研究描述了两个人道主义环境中10至14岁VYA的特征，重点关注青春期过渡以及获取SRH信息的情况。
通过横断面调查收集数据，调查对象为居住在埃塞俄比亚科比难民营的索马里VYA（n = 406）以及居住在泰国美索和波帕拉移民社区的缅甸VYA（n = 399）。两个社区的平均年龄均为12岁（约一半为女孩）。在每个地点采用与规模成比例的概率多阶段整群抽样方法招募参与者。使用描述性统计来描述社会人口学、家庭、同伴和学校教育特征，并探讨青春期过渡以及获取SRH信息的情况。
两个地点的大多数VYA报告称与父母双方同住；十分之九的人表示感觉父母/监护人关心他们，超过一半的人说父母/监护人会监督他们如何度过空闲时间以及与谁一起度过。两个地点目前入学率都很高（索马里为91.4%，缅甸为87.0%）。很少有VYA，特别是10至12岁的人，报告开始进入青春期，尽管四分之一的索马里人表示不知道自己是否进入青春期。大多数已经开始月经初潮的缅甸女孩报告能够获得月经卫生用品（水、卫生设施、布/卫生巾）。没有索马里女孩报告能获得所有这些用品。虽然两个地点超过一半的受访者报告了解身体变化，但不到20%的人了解怀孕相关知识，大多数人（索马里为87.4%，缅甸为78.6%）表示需要更多关于身体变化的信息。父母/监护人是两个地点SRH信息最常见的来源，然而VYA表示他们希望从朋友兄弟姐妹、教师和卫生工作者那里获得更多信息。
本研究突出了两个人道主义环境中青春期健康过渡所需的SRH信息以及月经卫生用品方面的差距。这些环境中的VYA表示与父母/监护人关系亲密，并且大多数人在上学。因此，引入涉及父母和教育中心的早期SRH干预措施可能会产生有希望的结果，为VYA提供理解和应对其青春期及性发育所需的技能。
