Improving adolescent sexual and reproductive health through digital health in Jimma, Ethiopia: a quasi-experimental study.

IF 2.4 4区医学 Q2 PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

International Health Pub Date : 2026-07-02 DOI:10.1093/inthealth/ihag068

Afework Tadele, Getu Gizaw, Merertu Wondimu, Badiru Dawud, Rahma Ali, Oli Kitila

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: Investing in adolescents' sexual and reproductive health (SRH) yields great benefits, as this period marks a crucial transition from childhood to adulthood. Many young people face SRH challenges due to limited knowledge and inability to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR). This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of digital health interventions in improving SRH among school adolescents and youths in Jimma, Ethiopia.

Methods: A quasi-experimental design was employed and data were collected from school youths. Analysis was conducted using EpiData version 4.6 and Stata version 17.0. Propensity score matching was applied to estimate average treatment effects and sensitivity analysis was conducted using a difference-in-differences approach.

Results: There was a significant improvement in SRH outcomes between baseline and the end line. Knowledge of SRHR increased by 26.8 percentage points (95% confidence interval [CI] 14.5 to 38.6), knowledge of SRH by 11.5 percentage points (95% CI 1.7 to 21.4) and positive attitudes toward SRHR by 27.4 percentage points (95% CI 17.5 to 37.3) following the digital intervention.

Conclusions: The digital health intervention significantly enhanced knowledge and attitudes related to SRHR among school adolescents. Further studies should explore whether improvements in knowledge and attitudes translate into longer-term reproductive health outcomes, such as contraceptive uptake, teenage pregnancy and unmet need for family planning.

查看原文本刊更多论文

在埃塞俄比亚吉马通过数字保健改善青少年性健康和生殖健康：一项准实验研究。

背景：投资于青少年的性健康和生殖健康（SRH）产生巨大的效益，因为这一时期标志着从童年到成年的关键过渡。许多年轻人面临性健康和生殖健康方面的挑战，因为他们对自己的性健康和生殖健康权利了解有限，无法做出知情的决定。本研究旨在评估数字健康干预措施在改善埃塞俄比亚吉马学校青少年性健康和生殖健康方面的有效性。方法：采用准实验设计，对在校青少年进行问卷调查。采用EpiData 4.6版本和Stata 17.0版本进行分析。使用倾向评分匹配来估计平均治疗效果，并使用差中差法进行敏感性分析。结果：在基线和终点线之间，SRH结果有显著改善。数字干预后，对SRHR的了解增加了26.8个百分点（95%置信区间[CI] 14.5至38.6），对SRHR的了解增加了11.5个百分点（95% CI 1.7至21.4），对SRHR的积极态度增加了27.4个百分点（95% CI 17.5至37.3）。结论：数字健康干预显著提高了学校青少年对性侵犯的相关知识和态度。进一步的研究应探讨知识和态度的改善是否会转化为长期的生殖健康结果，例如避孕药具的摄取、少女怀孕和未满足的计划生育需求。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Health PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH-

CiteScore

4.50

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

>12 weeks

期刊介绍： International Health is an official journal of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. It publishes original, peer-reviewed articles and reviews on all aspects of global health including the social and economic aspects of communicable and non-communicable diseases, health systems research, policy and implementation, and the evaluation of disease control programmes and healthcare delivery solutions. It aims to stimulate scientific and policy debate and provide a forum for analysis and opinion sharing for individuals and organisations engaged in all areas of global health.