KNOWLEDGE REGARDING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE AMONG ETHNIC MINORITY ADOLESCENTS IN VIETNAM

Background: Insufficient knowledge of reproductive health care increases the risk of reproductive health issues among ethnic minority adolescents in Vietnam.

Object: This study aimed to evaluate the level of knowledge of reproductive health care among ethnic minority adolescents and the effect of intrapersonal and interpersonal factors.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 305 ethnic minority adolescents who were Tay and Dao aged 15-19 living in the mountainous regions of Northern Vietnam. Descriptive and bivariate correlation techniques were used to describe the respondents’ knowledge of reproductive health care and determine the gaps in this regard. The qualitative data consisted of 22 in-depth interviews and focus group discussions.

Results: There were statistically significant differences in adolescents' knowledge of pregnancy according to gender and mother–child communication about reproductive health issues. Specifically, the percentage of girls who knew about the signs of pregnancy was nearly twice as high as that of male adolescents (72.1% and 37.1%, respectively ), and the proportion who openly conversed with their mothers knew more about the signs of pregnancy and how to take care of the fetus.

The percentage of adolescents who answered the questions assessing knowledge of contraception at good and very good levels was only 39.3%. The adolescent girls who were Tay and those who had good communication with their mothers also had better knowledge of contraception.

Furthermore, research showed a strong correlation between knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases and adolescents’ educational level, as well as the use of social media to access information about reproductive health. Accordingly, adolescents with higher educational attainment (college/university) and aged 18-19 had more comprehensive knowledge about sexually transmitted diseases and their prevention. Similarly, adolescents who received reproductive health care information from social media had a rate of knowing at least two sexually transmitted diseases that was 1.3 times higher than those who did not use social media to obtain reproductive health care information.

Conclusions: Our findings revealed a relatively good level of knowledge of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases among ethnic minority adolescents; however, there were gaps in contraceptive knowledge. Thus, it is necessary to enhance the dissemination of information about reproductive health care for boys, the Dao, and adolescents under 18 years, and to develop a culture of communication between parents and children on this topic.