Anambra State Government, in collaboration with the State Primary Health Care Development Agency (ASPHCDA) and Jhpiego, has established adolescent-friendly corners in six primary healthcare centres across three Local Government Areas to improve young people’s access to confidential, affordable and quality healthcare services.
The six beneficiary facilities are Aguata Primary Healthcare Center and Oye Achina Primary Healthcare Center in Aguata Local Government Area; Odekpe Primary Healthcare Center and Okpoko 2 Primary Healthcare Center in Ogbaru Local Government Area; and Oba 1 Primary Healthcare Center and Alor Primary Healthcare Center in Idemili South Local Government Area.
The selected facilities have been provided with educational and recreational materials, including television sets, tables and chairs, motivational and educational books, question-and-answer materials, brain games, Ludo, ladders, table tennis equipment and skipping ropes.
The initiative is designed to provide safe, welcoming and comfortable spaces where adolescents and young people can freely access healthcare services and discuss their health, sexual and reproductive health, psycho-social and developmental concerns without fear, embarrassment, stigma or discrimination.
Speaking on the initiative, the Officer in Charge of Adolescent Reproductive Health Programmes at the Anambra State Ministry of Health, Mrs. Ifeoma Nwakpadolu, said the establishment of the corners was in response to the barriers that often discourage adolescents from accessing healthcare services.
Nwakpadolu explained that many adolescents feel uncomfortable visiting conventional healthcare facilities because the environment may not adequately respond to their unique needs and concerns, stressing that young people are more likely to seek healthcare when they feel safe, respected and assured that their privacy and confidentiality will be protected.
According to her, the adolescent-friendly corners are intended to provide accessible, confidential, comprehensive and affordable services that respond to the health and developmental needs of young people, while encouraging adolescents to make Primary Healthcare Centres their preferred point of contact whenever they have health-related concerns.
Also speaking, the State Team Lead for Jhpiego’s Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Project in Anambra, Mr. Amaechi Okafor, said the materials were procured specifically to strengthen youth-friendly services at selected health facilities, adding that the project currently supports six Primary Healthcare Centres with plans to extend the intervention to additional facilities.
“The initiative is funded by the Global Fund through the National AIDS and STIs Control Programme (NASCP), in collaboration with Jhpiego, as part of broader efforts to strengthen youth-friendly services and improve adolescents’ access to appropriate sexual and reproductive health information and services,” he said.
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He emphasized that creating an enabling environment for adolescents was essential to increasing service uptake and ensuring that young people receive accurate information and appropriate healthcare services whenever they need them.
Receiving the items on behalf of the Agency, the Executive Secretary of the Anambra State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Chizoba Ezeasor, expressed the Agency’s commitment to strengthening adolescent-responsive healthcare services across the state, while commending the partners for supporting the establishment of the adolescent-friendly corners.
“The establishment of the adolescent-friendly corners is expected to reduce barriers to healthcare access, increase the utilization of Primary Healthcare Centres among adolescents, strengthen youth-friendly services and promote a more supportive, confidential and adolescent-responsive healthcare system in Anambra State,” she said.
