Background and Objectives: Pre-marriage counseling enables couples to be aware of all aspects of sexuality and make them enjoy sexual activity. This study aimed to assess quality of sexual health counseling services in pre-marriage counseling centers in Tabriz. Material and Methods: In this study, 236 individuals referred to the pre-marital counseling centers in Tabriz were randomly selected. Data were gathered using a self-structured instrument including items on demographic characteristics and sexual health. The validity and reliability of the instrument was confirmed. Results: The results showed that 5.1% of the clients did not receive any sexual health services. More than half of the participants (53.4%) received low information and 41.5% received moderate information on the sexual health. There was a significant relationship between age and sexual health (p<0.05). Conclusion: It seems that focusing on the quality of sexual health services could help couples to have a healthy marriage.
Mohammad Shariati, Raheleh Babazadeh, Khadigeh Mirzaii Najmabadi, Seyed Abbas Mousavi, Volume 6, Issue 3 (7-2016)
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Adolescence is the time of the transition from childhood to adulthood; but it is also a formative period of the life habits in which many of the lifestyles are learned and established. This study was done to explore the views and experiences of adolescent girls and adults in order to clarify characteristics of youth-friendly reproductive health services.
Materials and Methods: This qualitative descriptive study was conducted during the period February–November 2012. Data were collected by carrying out focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews with 247 adolescent girls and 14 key adults, including school counselors and health providers in Mashhad and Shahroud cities. All interviews and focus group discussions were recorded on two digital recorders and were transcribed. Routine content analysis, data coding and categorization were performed by MAXQDA10.
Results: The characteristics of youth-friendly reproductive health services were classified in four categories: (1) personnel factors (2) physical and environmental factors of the services providers (3) management factors and (4) stimulus factors.
Conclusion: According to the results of the study, establishing centers of reproductive health services for female adolescents of this age group can play an important role in preventing reproductive health problems them.
Seyed Abbas Mosavi, Khadijeh Mirzaii, Mohammad Shariati, Raheleh Babazadeh, Volume 10, Issue 3 (7-2020)
Abstract
Background: Investment in the adolescents' health is an effective way to improve the public health. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the views and experiences of adolescent girls and key adults to identify the facilitators of access to sexual and reproductive health services among Iranian adolescent girls. Methods: In this qualitative study, the data were gathered through focus groups and semi-structured interviews with 247 adolescent girls and 71 key adults in Iran. The collected data were coded and categorized using a content analysis method in MAXQDA v10. Results:: The main facilitators of Iranian adolescent girls’ access to reproductive health services were classified into five categories: 1) Factors associated with policymaking, such as governmental support; 2) benefiting from the religion’s potentials; 3) social and cultural factors, such as creating a supportive environment in the community; 4) public participation; and 5) factors associated with the methods of service delivery.Conclusion: The governments’ acceptance of sexual health education shortcomings is the most important factor affecting the successful implementation of reproductive health programs for Iranian adolescents. Overall, increasing public participation and intersectional collaboration, besides creating a supportive environment in the community, is the next step in improving sexual health education.
Background: Women’s satisfaction with fertility counseling and preconception care is a key indicator of the quality of reproductive health services. Objectives: This study aimed to assess satisfaction levels and their determinants among women of reproductive age attending urban Comprehensive Health Service Centers in Shahroud, Iran. Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted from May to December 2022 involving 319 women selected through multistage sampling from all 10 urban health centers in Shahroud County. Data were collected immediately after preconception care visits using a validated 35-item questionnaire covering two domains: childbearing counseling (11 items, score range 11–55) and preconception care (24 items, score range 24–120). Scores were converted to percentages and categorized as low (<51%), moderate (51–75%), or high (>75%) satisfaction. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 22. Results: Mean satisfaction scores were 29.59 (8.34) for childbearing counseling (53.8%) and 56.59 (15.67) for preconception care (47.2%), indicating moderate to low satisfaction overall (total score: 86.18 (20.76), 49.2%). Highest satisfaction in counseling was for “husband’s presence during counseling” (36.1% strongly agreed), and lowest was for “education was sufficient and understandable” (0.6% strongly agreed). In preconception care, the highest disagreement was with “ease of locating the service site” (64.9%), and the lowest strong agreement was for “midwife’s behavior was polite” (1.3%). Key deficiencies included inadequate education, poor communication, unclear risk explanation, and structural barriers. Community health worker accessibility was noted as a relative strength. Conclusion: Low satisfaction primarily stemmed from poor communication, insufficient education, and infrastructural challenges. Enhancing provider communication, educational quality, privacy, and multidisciplinary access is essential.
