Youth-Friendly Health Services
The second decade of life is a period of physical and emotional changes associated with maturation. That's why adolescent health is a priority sector for UNICEF programming
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The missing population in universal health coverage
The Sustainable Development Goals and global political momentum behind Universal Health Coverage (UHC) offer significant opportunities to build collective global and national action towards achieving universal health coverage for adolescents. A strong evidence base on adolescent health and makes the case that to achieve Universal Health Coverage, policy makers need to take urgent action in the areas of service delivery, financing and governance. There are nearly 1.2 billion adolescents (10-19 years old) worldwide.
Globally, each year there are more than 1.2 million adolescent deaths. While the majority of adolescent health issues are preventable or treatable, adolescents face multiple barriers in accessing health care and information.
The second decade of life is a period of physical and emotional changes associated with maturation. Formation of safe behavior skills and the development of friendly to adolescents gender-sensitive medico-social services will improve not only adolescents health, but have the impact on the health of future generation.
Still there are many challenges regarding youth-friendly health services in Belarus, which we are striving to solve.
Utilization of youth-friendly health services by adolescents is reported to be still very low with serious implications on adolescent sexuality, growth and development, particularly among risk groups.
The scope of services provided varies among the centers depending on the availability of staff, supplies, medicines and location of centres. Mostly, the lack of health specialists limits the utilization of youth-friendly health services particularly by young males.
The need to refer the client diminishes the quality of services counteracts the very idea of youth-friendly health centers being accessible in one place and guaranteeing confidentiality and privacy.
Mechanisms for data collection and analysis functioning at present do not allow to measure benefits/outcomes and practice evidence-based planning. If data is not collected to implement further improvement of service delivery, sustainability of youth-friendly health services operations may be risked.
Youth friendly health services through partnerships
UNICEF is working with the Ministry of Health to provide youth friendly health centres across Belarus.
The overall goal of the programme is to reduce behavioural risks amongst vulnerable and at risk young people in terms of susceptibility to HIV/AIDS, STIs, substance (drug) abuse, and unwanted pregnancies by improving access to quality and friendly services within the health system.
Improving service delivery, laws and policies:
In most countries, health systems and services are mainly designed for either young children or adults. Given their specific health and development needs, adolescents require responsive anticipatory models of service delivery. Due to biological and gender-based differences that result in varied health risks and disease incidence, these health services must always apply an appropriate ‘gender lens.’ Governments need to reach adolescents with high quality, well-coordinated and well integrated programs in their everyday context. This demands coordinated multi-sectoral action across a range of service delivery platforms, and should be complemented by laws guaranteeing that adolescents have access to services.
Increasing financing:
National health strategies and investment plans for UHC must include adolescents, with an emphasis on the most vulnerable and marginalized adolescents and their families to ensure equity. Investing in vertical or single-issue programmes is rarely efficient.
Programmes should be designed to address multiple risk factors and vulnerabilities and all adolescents should be covered by mandatory, prepaid, pooled funding with user fees reduced or eliminated.
Strengthening governance:
Adolescents themselves should be empowered to initiate action and influence decisions that affect their health and development through mechanisms that allow for meaningful participation. This should be bolstered with disaggregated and regular data to know the magnitude of disease burden, health needs and barriers to services for this age group.
UNICEF in Belarus is working to:
Mobilize expertise and resources, strengthen partnership to support the Ministry of Health to make youth friendly health services universal, focused on vulnerable adolescents including through outreach, inclusive and coordinated cross-sectoral approach.
Monitor the situation of adolescents health, rights fulfillment and provide evidences for the informed decision making concerning adolescents’ health and wellbeing.
Assist in the improvement of the normative framework, integration of youth friendly principles into the primary health care system, strengthening centers’ staff and partners’ capacities.
Widening the outreach work with hard-to-reach groups of young people, training them to cope with life’s inevitable problems and motivating for positive behavior patterns and healthy lifestyle.
Support mass media campaigns aimed at positive behavior change, formation of healthy lifestyle, reduction stigma and discrimination towards marginalized groups of adolescents in the society.
Promotion of HIV testing and counseling and the institutionalization of HIV express-testing.
Widening adolescents’ participation to ensure that they are full met their needs and address their vulnerabilities and can be timely adjusted to emerging issues.
48 Youth-friendly health centers have been established in Belarus as key institutions to meet the health care needs of adolescents and young people. In 2017 they have undergone the certification procedure to ensure that provided services are met WHO quality care standards for youth friendly health services.
Reports and documents
The National Strategy on Strengthening Children's and Adolescents' Health, 2017;
Report of the YFHCs Certification, 2017;
Assessment of Youth Friendly Health Services In The Republic of Belarus, Assessment Report, Tamar Gotsadze, 2015.
