Connecting Conversations: Adolescent Responsive Approaches

The series is hosted by FP2030 and Knowledge SUCCESS, featuring 5 modules with 4-5 conversations per module. The third series, One Size Does Not Fit All: Reproductive Health Services Within the Greater Health System Must Respond to Young People's Diverse Needs, began on March 4 and consists of four sessions. A health systems approach is essential for addressing the reproductive health needs of adolescents. Dr. Valentina Baltag, Unit Head of the Adolescent and Young Adult Health Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health and Ageing for the World Health Organization, emphasized that most resources are in the health sector, and existing resources should be used to serve adolescents. Spending is disproportionately allocated for adults, leading to a disconnect between the healthcare needs of adolescents and the amount spent on them. Dr. Baltag identified several key elements of an adolescent responsive systems approach, including governance, financing, health management and information systems, adolescent-competent healthcare providers, and service delivery. When these elements are addressed together, a health systems approach can be used to ensure that providers are adequately supported to respond to the needs of adolescents. Dr. María del Carmen Calle Dávila, Vice President of the International Association of Adolescent Health in the Latin American Region, shared insights from her work in Latin America, highlighting the importance of expanding discussions beyond services alone to include social determinants, education, and opportunities that young people have. She emphasized the need to look beyond the clinical aspect of providing care and to think outside the box, working with other sectors to address violence and other issues affecting vulnerable adolescents. Ieva Berankyte, Liaison Officer for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Issues Including HIV and AIDS for the International Federation of Medical Students' Association, discussed adolescent health from the perspective of a medical student, emphasizing the role of students in changing the way we view adolescents within the health system. She shared that medical school students can seek out informal education, such as joining advocacy efforts, to gain knowledge lacking in the curricula on how to address the healthcare needs of young people. Youth spaces/corners can be effective in conjunction with service provision by a trained provider, but providing information alone does not work. Dr. Baltag emphasized the importance of critical thinking and evaluation, ensuring that program evaluation is conducted to ascertain that what is intended to be achieved is actually achieved. Dr. Baltag also discussed an initiative to make every school a health-promoting school, calling on ministers of education to emphasize health and wellbeing as a primary factor in everything they do. The speakers agreed that there is often a disconnect between school health programs and what the ministry of health is implementing. The series will continue with sessions on how services can better meet the diverse needs of young people, implementing an adolescent responsive approach, and serving adolescents as they grow and change. The first module, which started on July 15 and ran through September 9, focused on a foundational understanding of adolescent development and health, offering a framework for understanding adolescent and youth reproductive health and implementing stronger programs with and for young people.