Impact of COVID-19 on household incomes and access to SRHR services by young people

Figure 9: Reasons for not obtaining the services sought.

These results were further highlighted in the qualitative interviews with key informants 20% 20% Needed service not in the health sector and focus available group discussions with young Could not afford the people and peer educators. For cost instance, the issue of longHealth workers not 20% available distance to the health facilities Other amidst a ban on public 40% transport coupled with the imposition of and strict enforcement of curfew was identified as a key impediment to access to and utilization of SRH services by young people as narrated: Access and utilization of SRH services during lockdown were low due to frequent stock-outs and restrictions on transport. Challenges to access and utilization of SRH were mainly transported to health facilities and yet there are long distances to health facilities. Private clinics must offer SRH services but in the villages, there are no clinics and where they are, services and products are very expensive for the majority of unemployed young people and general high poverty levels in the area. For example, a packet of condom with 3 pieces ranges from 1500 to 5000 depending on the type.

This is quite high for most young people. (Secretary for Health and Social Services, Mayuge) In addition, there were concerns that some VHTs and health workers were not properly trained to appropriately handle issues of young people in a youth-friendly manner: With VHTs, there are fears that because these VHTS are recruited from within their villages the issue of confidentiality and disclosure prevents young people to report to them (District Health Officer) I was at Kasutaime Health Centre II and a young female person came. She had brought a child for polio immunization. She called me and told me “I feel like seeking a family planning service, but I fear these health workers.” I asked her the preferred choice of family planning and then referred her to the appropriate health worker. She got the best service she wanted and left a happy mother (Reach A Hand Peer Educator) These findings resonate with existing evidence about the role of youth-friendly interventions in attracting young people to seek and utilize services. Particularly, the quotation from the peer educator illustrates how the age of the provider can be a restrictive or facilitative factor for young people to utilize existing SRH services.

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