Perspectives of Adolescents, Parents, Service Providers, and Teachers on Mobile Phone Use for Sexual Reproductive Health Education

Beverly M. Ochieng, Lesley Smith, Bev Orton, Mark Hayter, Margaret Kaseje, Charles O. Wafula, Penina Ocholla, Franklin Onukwugha and Dan C. O. Kaseje
Additional contact information
Beverly M. Ochieng: Tropical Institute of Community Health and Development (TICH), P.O. Box 4074, Kisumu 40103, Kenya
Lesley Smith: Institute for Clinical and Applied Health Research (ICAHR), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, UK
Bev Orton: Faculty of Arts, Culture and Education, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, UK
Mark Hayter: Department of Nursing, Manchester Metropolitan University, Brooks Building, 53 Bonsall Street, Manchester M15 6GX, UK
Margaret Kaseje: Tropical Institute of Community Health and Development (TICH), P.O. Box 4074, Kisumu 40103, Kenya
Charles O. Wafula: Tropical Institute of Community Health and Development (TICH), P.O. Box 4074, Kisumu 40103, Kenya
Penina Ocholla: Tropical Institute of Community Health and Development (TICH), P.O. Box 4074, Kisumu 40103, Kenya
Franklin Onukwugha: Institute for Clinical and Applied Health Research (ICAHR), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, UK
Dan C. O. Kaseje: Tropical Institute of Community Health and Development (TICH), P.O. Box 4074, Kisumu 40103, Kenya

Social Sciences, 2022, vol. 11, issue 5, 1-26

Abstract: Mobile health (mHealth) programs offer opportunities to improve the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of adolescents by providing information. This paper reports the findings of a study carried out in Homabay County, Kenya, to assess stakeholders’ perspectives on access to and use of mobile phones by adolescents for SRH education. We aimed to establish whether mobile phones could facilitate access to SRH information by adolescents and the barriers to be addressed. This was a qualitative exploratory study involving adolescents, parents, teachers, health care workers, and community health volunteers. Data were collected through focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews (KIIs), and were analyzed through thematic and content analysis. Respondents lauded mHealth as an effective and efficient approach to adolescent SRH education with a potential to promote the learning of useful SRH information to influence their behavior formation. Respondents pointed out bottlenecks such as the limited ownership of and inequitable access to phones among adolescents, logistical barriers such as lack of electricity, internet connectivity, and the impact of phones on school performance, which must be addressed. The usefulness of mHealth in adolescent SRH education can be enhanced through inclusive program formulation and co-creation, implemented through safe spaces where adolescents would access information in groups, and supported by trained counselors.

Keywords: adolescents; sexual and reproductive health; mobile health; service access; service utilization; health education; comprehensive sexuality education and health equity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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