Swapna Budimelli1, Kalyan Chebrolu2
INTRODUCTION
Adolescents constitute about 22 per cent of India's population. This huge section of population represents a great 'demographic dividend' and offers a dependable potential to drive and sustain economic growth that India has experienced in last few years. Adolescents are generally considered healthy by themselves, their families, even healthcare providers and society at large. Yet they are known to suffer significant morbidity caused by risk taking behaviour and inadequate access to health care.
OBJECTIVES
ï?· To study the demographic profile of the adolescent girls living in rural areas.
ï?· To study the psychosocial risk profile of the adolescent girls using the ‘HEEADSSS’ approach.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A cross-sectional observational study was conducted in Chinakakani village, the Rural Field Practice Area of NRI Medical College, Guntur for six months from February to July 2015. A total of 191 sample was selected by systematic random sampling method after listing out the adolescent girls residing in the study village. The pre- designed, pre-tested semi- structured schedule was administered to the respondents by interview method. WHO ‘HEEADSSS’ questionnaire is made appropriate and suitable to the rural areas consisting of eight components namely, Home and Environment, Education and Employment, Eating habits, Activities, Drugs, Sexuality, Suicide and Depression and Safety.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
The data collected was analyzed using Microsoft Excel and EPI Info statistical package. The psychosocial risk of each adolescent was quantified using a 100 point scale developed by the Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.
RESULTS
Only 9.9% of the rural adolescent girls were found to be normal based upon the psychosocial ‘HEEADSSS’ risk score, 73.3% girls are having mild-to-moderate psychosocial risk, 13.6% and 3.1% were found with severe and very severe risk respectively.
CONCLUSION
Psychosocial risk is found to be high among the rural adolescent girls in the present study. A strategy aimed at these psychosocial risk factors should be developed taking into consideration both the adolescent girls as well as their parents.
