Abstract:
Background: Health care providers have a key role in promotion and provision of adolescents’ reproductive health services. Despite that, adolescents still face obstacles in accessing family planning and abortion related services from health providers.
Objectives: The study aimed at assessing Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Health Care Providers (HCPs) in provision of modern Family Planning (FP) and Post Abortion Care (PAC) services to adolescents.
Methods: This was a descriptive cross sectional study, conducted in public health facilities in Temeke municipal. Selection of health facilities was through stratified random sampling and participants were recruited by random sampling from each facility. Pretested structured questionnaire was used to collect data.The data obtained was entered into EPI-INFO and then analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 18. Descriptive statistics and chi-square test were performed to drive proportions and association.
Results: There was a good knowledge and practice of HCPs on PACs (> 80%). Most components of PACs were well performed except for community participation which was 5.4% among study participants. Nearly half of study participants had poor knowledge on FPs and contraceptives with long term effect were the least provided to adolescents (Intra Uterine Contraceptive Devices (IUCDs) 17.1%, Implants (19.7%). Negative attitude prevailed among study participants towards provision of PACs and FPs to adolescents (43% and 45.7% respectively).
Conclusion: There is limited knowledge on modern family planning services together with a negative attitude on provision of PACs and FPs to adolescents among health providers. This may have negative impact to the provision of both PACs and FPs to adolescent. Therefore efforts to train and alleviate negative attitude on FPs and PACs among HCPs is of paramount importance to improve those services to adolescents as a special group.
