Abstract:

Adolescents’ need for Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) has been underscored globally. Poor utilization of the services by adolescents has been reported. Adolescent-friendly healthcare professionals are very important in motivating adolescents’ utilisation of SRH services in Nigeria. This study assessed the preferred facility and Service providers by in-school adolescents in Osun state, Nigeria. A descriptive cross-sectional design was employed to survey 422 in-school adolescents in public and private secondary schools in Osun state. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select participants and data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Quantitative data analysis was done using descriptive and inferential statistics with SPSS version 23. The majority (91.0%) of adolescents were middle-aged (14 – 16 years) while a few (9.0%) were late adolescents (17-19 years). Preference when assessing SRH services was more for doctors (36.5%) and nurses (30.3%). Preferred facilities for SRH services include private hospitals (38.3 %), school clinics (26.4%), primary health centres (6.5%), general hospitals (2.5%), Maternity centres (11.4%) and teaching hospitals (1%). Active utilization of SRH by adolescents requires the availability and involvement of their preferred health personnel.

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