Health information-seeking behaviours among pregnant teenagers in Ejisu-Juaben Municipality, Ghana

Association between quality of antenatal care service utilisation and adverse birth outcomes among adolescent women in 22 Sub-Saharan African countries. A mixed-effects multilevel analysis

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to assess the association between the quality of antenatal care (ANC) service utilisation and adverse birth outcomes among adolescent women in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

METHODS

A two-level mixed-effects model was employed using the recent Demographic Health Survey (DHS) data from 22 SSA countries. Both bivariable and multivariable multilevel analyses were conducted to assess the association between individual and community level factors with adverse birth outcomes. The results of the fixed effects model were interpreted in the form of adjusted odds ratios (AORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).

RESULTS

In SSA, 23.5 % of adolescent mothers experienced adverse birth outcomes. This study found that receiving high quality ANC was associated with a 28 % reduction in the likelihood of adverse birth outcomes (AOR = 0.72, 95 % CI: 0.63, 0.83). Among the individual-level factors, middle-aged adolescence (AOR = 1.23, 95 % CI: 1.11, 1.36), being a female newborn (AOR = 1.15, 95 % CI: 1.05, 1.26), single marital status (AOR = 0.87, 95 % CI: 0.78, 0.96) and higher educational status (AOR = 0.83, 95 % CI: 0.74, 0.93) were significantly associated with adverse birth outcomes. From the community-level variables, women from Eastern Africa had positive significant association with adverse birth outcomes (AOR = 1.30, 95 % CI: 1.15, 1.46).

CONCLUSIONS

Nearly one-fourth of adolescent women in SSA experienced at least one type of adverse birth outcome. Low quality of ANC was significantly associated with adverse birth outcomes. Policymakers need to consider a comprehensive, essential, and minimal package of ANC to enhance the quality of ANC, which is crucial for better adolescent birth outcomes.

New models of health and social care for people in later life: mapping of innovation in services in two regions of the United Kingdom using a mixed method approach

BACKGROUND

Innovation for reforming health and social care is high on the policy agenda in the United Kingdom in response to the growing needs of an ageing population. However, information about new innovations of care being implemented is sparse.

METHODS

We mapped innovations for people in later life in two regions, North East England and South East Scotland. Data collection included discussions with stakeholders (n = 51), semi-structured interviews (n = 14) and website searches that focused on technology, evaluation and health inequalities. We analysed qualitative data using framework and thematic analyses. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively.

RESULTS

One hundred eleven innovations were identified across the two regions. Interviewees reported a wide range of technologies that had been rapidly introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic and many remained in use. Digital exclusion of certain groups of older people was an ongoing concern. Innovations fell into two groups; system-level ones that aimed to alleviate systems pressures such as preventing hospital (re)admissions, and patient-level ones which sought to enhance health and wellbeing directly. Interviewees were aware of the importance of health inequalities but lacked data to monitor the impact of innovations on these, and evaluation was challenging due to lack of time, training, and support. Quantitative findings revealed that two thirds of innovations (n = 74, 67%) primarily focused on the system level, whilst a third (n = 37, 33%) primarily focused on the patient-level. Overall, over half (n = 65, 59%) of innovations involved technologies although relatively few (n = 12, 11%) utilised advanced technologies. Very few (n = 16, 14%) focused on reducing health inequalities, and only a minority of innovations (n = 43, 39%) had undergone evaluation (most of which were conducted by the service providers themselves).

CONCLUSIONS

We found a wide range of innovative care services being developed for people in later life, yet alignment with key policy priorities, such as addressing health inequalities, was limited. There was a strong focus on technology, with little consideration for the potential to widen the health inequality gap. The absence of robust evaluation was also a concern as most innovations were implemented without support to monitor effectiveness and/or without plans for sustainability and spread.

Utilisation of Reproductive Health Services among Adolescents in Ghana: Analysis of the 2007 and 2017 Ghana Maternal Health Surveys

Early pubertal development induces early sexual activities among adolescents. In Ghana, despite the high sexual activity among Ghanaian adolescents, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services are underutilised, primarily due to SRH stigma and a lack of SRH knowledge and information. This study examined the use of SRH services among adolescents aged 15-19 years in Ghana over a ten year period. The study utilised data from the 2007 and 2017 Ghana Maternal Health Surveys (GMHSs). Responses from 2056 and 4909 adolescent females captured in the 2007 and 2017 GMHSs, respectively, were used. The results showed a declining utilisation of SRH services among adolescents from 28.3% in 2007 to 22.5% in 2017. The odds of using family planning among sexually active adolescents increased from 2007 [AOR-0.32, CI-(0.135, 0.77), p < 0.001] to 2017 [AOR-68.62, CI-(36.104, 130.404), p < 0.001]. With increasing age at first sex, adolescents were less likely to use a family planning method in 2007 [AOR-0.94, CI-(0.89,0.99) p < 0.001], but this improved in 2017 [AOR-1.26, CI-(1.220, 1.293), p < 0.001]. Despite this, knowledge of sources for family planning was found to predict its lower utilisation in both 2007 [AOR = 0.15 (95% CI-0.081, 0.283), p < 0.0001] and 2017 [AOR = 0.206 (95% CI-(0.099, 0.426), p < 0.001]. The findings show that even though knowledge of family planning methods predicted low utilisation, knowledge of sources, age at first sex, and educational level positively predicted the utilisation of SRH services from 2007 to 2017. Opportunities for both enhancing the clinical environment and health provider attitudes exist and should be explored for improving SRH outcomes among sexually active adolescents in Ghana.

Ramadan fasting intentions among pregnant women in Lebanon

BACKGROUND

According to Islam's teachings, women are religiously exempt from fasting during pregnancy if a woman is concerned about her health or that of the fetus. This study assesses the intentions of pregnant women to fast during Ramadan and evaluates the contribution of items derived from the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in predicting these intentions.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was carried out in Arabic on a convenience sample of 181 pregnant women in Lebanon using a mixture of in-person (46), telephone (31), and online recruitment (104) techniques from February to April 2020. An Exploratory Bayes Tree Analysis was done to examine which TPB items appeared to separate the intention to fast in the best possible way. Then, an ordinal regression was completed followed by a latent class analysis to examine specific classes of participants that could be determined based on the regression results.

RESULTS

Overall, 58% of participants had the intention to fast all days of Ramadan, 22% had the intention to fast some days and 20% did not intend to fast for any duration. A model was run with perceptions of physical ability, Islam guidance, husband's opinion importance, mother's opinion beliefs, and impact on general health as predictors (R2 = 0.74). A four-cluster model was chosen as the most parsimonious one in interpretation, where classes one and two included the groups of women who intended to fast month-long with differences in predictors. Class three represented the group of women who did not have the intention to fast and the final class represented the group of women who had the intention to fast some days of the month. The women's belief in their physical ability to fast and the opinion of the pregnant women's mothers were very important in deciding the participants' intention to fast.

CONCLUSIONS

Items derived from TPB constructs helped in producing a model predicting women's intention to fast during Ramadan. Educational messages and interventions related to fasting while pregnant may be delivered by individuals with legitimacy among pregnant women such as those viewed by the target population as powerful motherly figures in their communities.

Using FIGO Nutrition Checklist counselling in pregnancy: A review to support healthcare professionals

The period before and during pregnancy is increasingly recognized as an important stage for addressing malnutrition. This can help to reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases in mothers and passage of risk to their infants. The FIGO Nutrition Checklist is a tool designed to address these issues. The checklist contains questions on specific dietary requirements, body mass index, diet quality, and micronutrients. Through answering these questions, awareness is generated, potential risks are identified, and information is collected that can inform health-promoting conversations between women and their healthcare professionals. The tool can be used across a range of health settings, regions, and life stages. The aim of this review is to summarize nutritional recommendations related to the FIGO Nutrition Checklist to support healthcare providers using it in practice. Included is a selection of global dietary recommendations for each of the components of the checklist and practical insights from countries that have used it. Implementation of the FIGO Nutrition Checklist will help identify potential nutritional deficiencies in women so that they can be addressed by healthcare providers. This has potential longstanding benefits for mothers and their children, across generations.

The information behaviours of disadvantaged young first-time mothers

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the information behaviours of socioeconomically disadvantaged young first-time mothers, an understudied and at-risk group (health and well-being).

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with 39 young mothers (aged up to 25 years of age) from UK areas of multiple deprivations.

Findings

Our participants' preferred sources of information are interpersonal sources with which they have formed close supportive relationships. Support groups are important sources of interpersonal connection, but young mothers are reluctant to attend groups involving older mothers. With the exception of support group staff and health visitors, institutional and professional information sources are used very little. Societal stigma is a significant issue influencing behaviours, but issues of institutional bureaucracy, information overload, conflicting information and practical access are also reported. A further key factor influencing behaviour is self-identity.

Research limitations/implications

Findings should not be considered representative of young mothers as a whole as not all young mothers are disadvantaged. As our participants identified as ethnically white, findings also cannot speak to the additional barriers experienced by women of colour. Further studies with further population groups are recommended. More broadly, further studies exploring the influence of self-identity on people's information behaviours are also recommended.

Practical implications

Findings provide practical direction for health and welfare services, and public libraries, to better support young mothers.

Originality/value

Findings contribute to conceptual and practical understanding of information poverty in the socio-ecological context. Findings also evidence the role of self-identity in shaping people's information behaviours.

Addressing the gaps in nutritional care before and during pregnancy

The present paper outlines current issues in the nutritional care of women during pregnancy and potential resources to address them. Globally, overnutrition, undernutrition and nutritional imbalances are widespread among women of reproductive age; increasing the risk of pregnancy complications and non-communicable diseases in both mothers and their children. Most women do not meet dietary guidelines for pregnancy. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends nutrition and weight counselling during pregnancy for all women. However, clinical practices focusing on nutrition vary and there is no consensus on which outcomes are most important for pregnancy nutrition interventions, with little consideration for the 'patient voice'. The International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) nutrition checklist is a clinical practice tool that is available for healthcare professionals that will address this issue. The pregnancy nutrition core outcome set will also support advancement of antenatal nutrition by identifying the most critical nutrition-related outcomes from the perspective of healthcare professionals, researchers and women with experience of pregnancy. While poor nutrition can result in adverse outcomes across women of all weight categories, those with obesity may require specialist care to reduce their risk. Obesity is a chronic, progressive, relapsing disease that has high individual variability in its prognosis. The use of obesity staging systems, which consider mental, physical and functional health, can stratify individuals into risk categories and aid in treatment prioritisation in pregnancy. As the prevalence of obesity continues to rise, an obesity staging approach may support clinicians, especially those in limited resource settings.

Understanding Information Needs and Barriers to Accessing Health Information Across All Stages of Pregnancy: Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Understanding consumers' health information needs across all stages of the pregnancy trajectory is crucial to the development of mechanisms that allow them to retrieve high-quality, customized, and layperson-friendly health information.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to identify research gaps in pregnancy-related consumer information needs and available information from different sources.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic review of CINAHL, Cochrane, PubMed, and Web of Science for relevant articles that were published from 2009 to 2019. The quality of the included articles was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program. A descriptive data analysis was performed on these articles. Based on the review result, we developed the Pregnancy Information Needs Ontology (PINO) and made it publicly available in GitHub and BioPortal.

RESULTS

A total of 33 articles from 9 countries met the inclusion criteria for this review, of which the majority were published no earlier than 2016. Most studies were either descriptive (9/33, 27%), interviews (7/33, 21%), or surveys/questionnaires (7/33, 21%); 20 articles mentioned consumers' pregnancy-related information needs. Half (9/18, 50%) of the human-subject studies were conducted in the United States. More than a third (13/33, 39%) of all studies focused on during-pregnancy stage; only one study (1/33, 3%) was about all stages of pregnancy. The most frequent consumer information needs were related to labor delivery (9/20, 45%), medication in pregnancy (6/20, 30%), newborn care (5/20, 25%), and lab tests (6/20, 30%). The most frequently available source of information was the internet (15/24, 63%). PINO consists of 267 classes, 555 axioms, and 271 subclass relationships.

CONCLUSIONS

Only a few articles assessed the barriers to access to pregnancy-related information and the quality of each source of information; further work is needed. Future work is also needed to address the gaps between the information needed and the information available.

A multidimensional study of public satisfaction with the healthcare system: a mixed-method inquiry in Ghana

BACKGROUND

Many governments in sub-Saharan Africa have recently sought to improve their health systems by increasing investment in healthcare facilities and introducing social insurance programmes. However, little is known about the impact of these intended improvements on public perceptions about the healthcare systems. This article examines whether and why people of different socioeconomic and ideological backgrounds are satisfied (or not) with the current healthcare system in Ghana from a social ecological perspective.

METHOD

Data were elicited from a cross-sectional mixed-method study conducted in four regions in Ghana in 2018. We used ordinal logistic regression and thematic analysis techniques to analyse the data.

RESULTS

Satisfaction with the healthcare system was generally low. From our quantitative study, intrapersonal factors (e.g., being older and having good health and well-being status); interpersonal factors (e.g., linking social capital); community factors (e.g., living in rural areas); and organisational and public policy factors (e.g., trust in the health system, favouring welfare policies, and being interested in politics) were positively associated with satisfaction with the healthcare system. These were corroborated by the qualitative study, which showed that poor attitudes of health personnel, financial constraints, perceived poor health facilities, and perceived inefficacy of services contribute to dissatisfaction with the healthcare system.

CONCLUSION

Strategies to improve satisfaction with the healthcare system in Ghana should incorporate ecological perspectives by considering factors such as demographic profile, health needs, political orientation, issues of trust in the healthcare system, and the dynamics and impact of social relationships of populations concerned.

Sources of nutrition information for Indonesian women during pregnancy: how is information sought and provided?

OBJECTIVE

Adequate and appropriate nutrition education is expected to contribute towards preventing risk of child stunting and maternal overweight/obesity. Understanding women's information-seeking behaviours is an important key step for health professionals and departments of health in order to improve the development of optimal and targeted nutrition education during pregnancy. This study investigated the experience of Indonesian women in seeking and receiving nutritional information during pregnancy and its relationship to women's socio-demographic and pregnancy characteristics.

DESIGN

An online cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Malang City, Indonesia.

PARTICIPANTS

Women who had given birth within the past 2 years (n 335).

RESULTS

All women in this study sought or received food and nutrition information from multiple sources, including social and health professional contacts and media sources. The women frequently discussed nutrition issues with their family, particularly their husband (98·2 %) and mother or mother-in-law (91·6 %). This study identified four groups of sources based on women's search habits. Women from high socio-economic strata were more likely to discuss food and nutrition issues or received nutrition information from obstetricians, their family or online sources (adjusted R2 = 26·3 %). Women from low socio-economic strata were more likely to receive nutrition information from midwives, health volunteers or Maternal and Child Health books (adjusted R2 = 14·5 %).

CONCLUSIONS

A variety of nutrition information sources needs to be provided for women from different socio-economic strata. Involvement of family members in antenatal nutrition education may improve the communication and effectiveness of young mothers' dietary and nutrition education.

Exploring Women's Health Information Needs During Pregnancy: A Qualitative Study

Objective: Pregnant women need health information to ensure their health and to have a healthy delivery. Therefore, equipping them with adequate information can bring desired health outcomes for them and their fetus. The present study was conducted to explore health information needs of women during pregnancy.

Materials and methods: The present research was a qualitative study. Thirty-nine participants (pregnant women, midwives, and obstetricians) were selected through purposeful sampling in Isfahan from June to November 2016. Data were collected through in-depth face-to-face semi-structured interviews, daily notes and field notes.

Results: Data analysis led to emergence of ten sub-categories including: "common complaints during pregnancy", "problems and complications in pregnancy", "factors affecting fetal health", "proper nutrition and take supplements during pregnancy", "sex during pregnancy", "exercise during pregnancy", "diagnostic tests in pregnancy", "fetal growth and development", "types of childbirth and preparation for delivery" and "baby care and breastfeeding" and finally the main category was the "health information needs".

Conclusion: Regarding the health information requests of pregnant women, their needs should be identified and taken into consideration when planning educational programs for this group of women.

Information-seeking in first visit pregnant women in Khayelitsha, South Africa

Background

The quality of the decisions made by women during pregnancy, especially their first visit, depends on their health needs, their health-seeking behaviour and the type of information available to them.

Aim

This study describes the health education needs, information barriers and health information-seeking behaviour of pregnant women on their first visit to antenatal clinics in a low-income setting in the Western Cape.

Setting

The setting was two antenatal facilities in Khayelitsha Health District facilities in South Africa.

Methods

A quantitative descriptive survey was conducted. A systematic random sample of 261 antenatal first visit attendees between May and July 2016 was selected. Data were collected using a researcher-administered questionnaire and was analysed using descriptive statistics, 95% confidence intervals and non-parametric tests.

Results

The response rate of the study was 92% (n = 240). Pregnant women attending an antenatal clinic for the first time reported high information needs with low health information-seeking behaviours and high information barriers. Doctors, nurses (2.2, ±1.0), family and friends (2.0, ±0.6) were the most frequently used sources of health information, while watching television or listening to the radio (1.5, ±0.9) were the least used sources of health information. Having a medical diagnosis (p < 0.001) and being of an advanced maternal age (p = 0.005) were predictive of higher health-seeking behaviour. The reliance on passively receiving information from health sources may indicate low levels of health literacy and its inverse relationship to health promoting behaviours which should be the subject of further investigation.

The complex information needs of disadvantaged young first-time mothers: insights into multiplicity of needs

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to holistically explore the information needs of socioeconomically disadvantaged young first-time mothers and associated issues of complexity.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper used survey and semi-structured field interviews with 39 young mothers (aged 15–23) from UK areas of multiple deprivations.

Findings

Participants reported multiple and complex needs spanning interrelated topics of parenting, poverty and personal development. In the majority of instances, participants were either unsure of their ability to meet their needs or needed help with needs, and several described situations of considerable anxiety and stress. Multiplicity is identified and conceptualised as an important factor contributing to complexity, including three component elements: simultaneous occurrence of needs (concurrency), relationships between needs (interconnectivity) and evolving needs (fluidity). In various combinations, these elements influenced a mother's actions and/or ability to selectively attend to needs, with multiple needs often competing for attention, and compounding issues of cognitive load and affect.

Research limitations/implications

This study draws attention to multiplicity of needs as an understudied topic within human information behaviour and calls for further research into how people recognise and attend to complex needs and influencing factors.

Practical implications

This study raises important questions regarding how we approach complexity of information needs in our design and delivery of information systems and services.

Originality/value

Evidences disadvantaged young mothers to have more extensive and complex information needs than previously understood, and identifies and conceptualised multiplicity as an important factor contributing to the complexity of information needs during major life transitions such as motherhood.

Perceived Barriers to Accessing Pregnancy-Related Health Information Among Married Adolescent Women: A Qualitative Study in Iran

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To date, no study has reported barriers to accessing pregnancy-related health information among married women younger than the age of 19 years. Indeed, the voice of the girls being married is absent in the literature. We sought to explore the barriers to accessing pregnancy-related health information from the perspective of Iranian married adolescent women.

DESIGN

Qualitative study.

SETTING

The research was conducted in Mashhad city (health care centers) and Shahrood County (a maternity teaching hospital, and urban/rural health care centers) in Iran.

PARTICIPANTS, INTERVENTIONS, AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Twenty-four married adolescent women aged 14-19 years were recruited through purposive sampling. Individual in-depth interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using conventional content analysis. Prolonged engagement with participants, maximum-variation sampling, member checking, peer deferring, and external audit were used to enhance the rigor of the study.

RESULTS

The results showed 3 categories: "structural barriers," "individual barriers," and "sociocultural barriers." The structural barriers category consisted of 2 subcategories, namely, poor quality of education and counseling in the health care centers, and transportation barriers. The 2 subcategories of the individual barriers category consisted of affective barriers and cognitive barriers. The sociocultural barriers category included the following 2 subcategories: husband's decision-making power and fear of being labeled infertile.

CONCLUSION

The barriers identified in this study should be considered when designing educational interventions for married adolescent women. Moreover, further research is needed to enhance current knowledge on this topic.

Periodic Information-seeking Behaviors of First-time Mothers in China

First-time mothers have a unique and varied set of information needs, but at present, these needs are seldom adequately addressed by libraries in China. As a first step in making libraries more helpful to this group, this study reports the results of a series of interviews aimed at understanding new mothers’ current information seeking behaviors. Thirty-seven first-time mothers (children from first year of birth to six years of age) took part in semi-structured in-depth interviews, answering questions about their information demand, information source selection (and factors influencing this selection), and obstacles encountered in the process of information search. It was found that first-time mothers’ information-seeking behavior varies from stage to stage, e. g. between pregnancy and the immediate postpartum period. Internet search plays an important role because of its perceived convenience and accessibility, but trust is the key factor during the process of information selection, regardless of source. Overall, the mothers we interviewed seldom use the library. This paper puts forward some suggestions to remedy that situation: libraries might consider opening a first-time-mothers reading room, increasing cooperative promotions with other institutions, providing diversified service projects, and organizing reading-promotion activities for first-time mothers at different stages. If implemented, these suggestions promise to help mothers navigate the transitions of pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare.

Health information needs, sources of information, and barriers to accessing health information among pregnant women: a systematic review of research

INTRODUCTION

Awareness of health information needs, sources of health information, and barriers to accessing health information among pregnant women is critical for the development of health interventions and provides high-quality prenatal care for them. Hence, the aim of this review study was to summarize evidence from studies evaluating health information needs, sources of information and barriers to accessing health information of women during pregnancy.

METHODS

A systematic literature search was conducted using Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar for relevant studies published between 1 January 2000 and 24 May 2018. The methodological quality of cross-sectional studies was assessed using the STROBE checklist. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP, 2018) was used to appraise the qualitative studies. Data were analyzed descriptively.

RESULTS

Thirty-one studies from 14 countries met criteria for inclusion in this review. The majority of articles focused on information needs and sources of information used by women during pregnancy. The most common information needs among women during pregnancy were information about unborn child, nutrition, and labor/delivery. The most frequent information source used by women during pregnancy was health professionals followed by informal source (family and friends), and Internet. The most prominent barriers to information access included the following: feeling ashamed or embarrassed to talk about pregnancy-related issues, long waiting times at clinic to see a health provider, and lack of adequate information resources.

CONCLUSIONS

Due to the limited number of studies examining barriers to health information seeking among pregnant women, further research is warranted. Further qualitative research is also recommended to explore pregnant women's perceptions of, and satisfaction with the use of health information sources.

A survey on adolescent health information seeking behavior related to high-risk behaviors in a selected educational district in Isfahan

Backgrounds

The characteristics and conditions of growth and development have made adolescence one of the most vital and influential ages for prevention and health promotion, especially in the area of high-risk behaviors. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to determine adolescent health information seeking behavior related to high-risk behaviors in a selected educational district in Isfahan (Iran).

Methodology

The present study was of an applied type, which was conducted using the survey research method. The statistical population consisted of adolescent students at public schools in Isfahan (6519 subjects), and the sample size was determined to be 364 based on Cochran's formula. The sampling method was of a cluster sampling type, and the data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. The validity of the questionnaire was approved by medical librarians, and using the Cronbach's alpha method, the reliability was obtained to be 0.85. SPSS 16 software was used for data analysis at two statistical levels: descriptive and inferential (independent t-test, one-sample t-test, chi-square, Pearson correlation coefficient and Mann-Whitney).

Findings

"Lack of mobility" was the most important health information need related to adolescent high-risk behaviors. The most important sources to obtain health information related to high-risk behaviors were "the Internet" with a mean score of 3.69 and "virtual social media" with a mean score of 3.49 out of 5. Adolescents had a positive attitude towards health information. The most important barriers to seeking health information were mentioned as follows: "difficulty in determining the quality of information found", "absence of appropriate information", and "concerns about the disclosure of their problems or illness to others". From the perspective of adolescents, the most important criterion for the evaluation of information quality was "the trueness and correctness of the information" and the need for health information related to high-risk behaviors was higher in girls than in boys.

Conclusions/Significance

Considering adolescents’ positive attitude towards use of health information, it is necessary to put valid information at their disposal through different information resources, taking into account their level of information literacy. Accordingly, medical librarians’ abilities are suggested to be used for the production, evaluation, and introduction of health-related reading materials in the field of high-risk behaviors in easy language and suitable for adolescents.