Accessibility and barriers to maternal health services for adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review.
Background: Globally, adolescent girls aged 15–19 years give birth to approximately 16 million children annually, accounting for 11% of all births. Low- and middle-income nations carry the burden of these births, with 95% happening in Africa, where maternal mortality rates continue to be high. In Su...
| Publicado en: | Therapeutic Advances in Reproductive Health Vol. 19; pp. 1 - 16 |
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| Autores principales: | , |
| Formato: | research systematic review tables/charts Journal Article |
| Publicado: |
Sage Publications Inc.
12/24/2025
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=190575772&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 190575772 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 26334941 N9DZ jtl: Therapeutic Advances in Reproductive Health issn: 26334941 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: 12/24/2025 vid: 19 pid: 344 pub: Sage Publications Inc. place: Thousand Oaks, California artinfo: ui: 190575772 190575772 190575772 10.1177/26334941251403814 190575772 ppf: 1 ppct: 15 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: Accessibility and barriers to maternal health services for adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review. aug: au: Muchemwa, Gladmore Khozah, Methembe Yotamu affil: Conceptualization, Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Environmental Science, National University of Science and Technology, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe sug: subj: Maternal Health Services In Adolescence Health Services Accessibility In Adolescence Adolescent Health Women's Health Africa South of the Sahara Reproductive Health Low and Middle Income Countries Human Africa South of the Sahara Adolescence Scoping Review PubMed Socioeconomic Factors Stigma Geographic Factors Health Policy Adolescent: 13-18 years ab: Background: Globally, adolescent girls aged 15–19 years give birth to approximately 16 million children annually, accounting for 11% of all births. Low- and middle-income nations carry the burden of these births, with 95% happening in Africa, where maternal mortality rates continue to be high. In Sub-Saharan Africa, early marriages persist, with roughly half of women delivering before age 20. Objectives: This scoping review aimed to map evidence on the accessibility and barriers to maternal health services for adolescent girls in Sub-Saharan Africa. Eligibility criteria: Included studies were peer-reviewed articles published in English between 2014 and 2025, focusing on adolescent girls (10–19 years) and maternal health services in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sources of evidence: Literature searches were conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Directory of Open Access Journals and Google Scholar. Charting methods: The review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 Scoping Review extension guidelines. Data were extracted using a pre-designed template and analysed thematically. Results were synthesized narratively and presented in tables. Results: A total of 652 records were identified, with 26 articles included. Key findings indicate that financial constraints, stigma, geographical distance and restrictive policies are significant barriers to access. While most studies focused on accessibility, aspects of quality such as provider attitudes, adherence to guidelines and respectful care were less frequently and deeply explored, representing a significant evidence gap. Community-based programmes and youth-friendly services were identified as key facilitators. Unmarried adolescents and those with lower education levels faced compounded barriers. Conclusion: Given their reproductive health vulnerabilities, maternal health services targeting adolescents should be prioritized in Sub-Saharan Africa. Interventions must address both access barriers and critically improve service quality, including provider training in adolescent-sensitive care, though the current evidence base on quality-specific interventions is limited. Further research is needed to develop standardized metrics for quality care in this population. Plain language summary: Accessibility and Barriers to Maternal Health Services for Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Scoping Review This research paper reviews studies on the challenges adolescent girls face in getting maternal healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa, where teenage pregnancy rates are high. The review found that major barriers like high costs, long distances to clinics and harsh social stigma often prevent young mothers from seeking vital care before and after childbirth. While some services exist, the research shows that the specific quality of care offered to adolescents, such as respectful treatment by staff or care tailored to their needs, is not well understood or measured. The paper concludes that to truly help young mothers, efforts must not only make services easier to access by removing financial and geographical obstacles but must also seriously focus on improving how they are treated by healthcare systems, including training providers to be more supportive and understanding. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research systematic review tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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