Browsing by Author "Daniel Ganu, DrPH"

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    Teenage Pregnancy Among Senior High School Children As A Public Health Issue In The Amansie West District Of Ghana
    (Researchjournali’s Journal of Public Health, 2018-03) Cecilia Amponsem-Boateng, MPH; Kwabena Acheampong, MPH; Daniel Ganu, DrPH; Evans Amponsah-Gyan, MABTS; Kenneth Oppong, MABTS
    Introduction: Teenage pregnancy is slowly killing the fate of our youth and the future of our nations. Globally, about 16 million lasses between the ages of 15 to 19 and some 1 million girls below the age of 15 give birth every year especially in low- and middle-income countries. Method: A random sampling technique was devised in choosing Manso Adubia SHS, out of the three Senior High schools in the Amansie West district. Participants were randomly selected from forms one to three by their own free will. Purposive sampling was also employed because the target of the researcher was on SHS students. Results: One hundred and twent yeight (128) students willingly participated in this study out of which 57.8% were males and 42.8 were females. Of this, 75.8% of the students believe that teenage pregnancy is mostly caused by peer pressure, 14.1% attributes it to ignorance and the most prone ages was between 15-17 years. There was significant association between why teenagers become pregnant, and what age group teenage pregnancy is most common, and whether or not parents/ or guardians are to be blamed for teenage pregnancy within this study group. On the impact of teen of teenage pregnancy on both teens and society, 67.7% believes it brings about school drop-out, 25.5% poverty, 4.3% child abuse, 2.3% over- dependency on the society. In suggesting remedies to reduce teenage pregnancy among senior high school students, they are of the view that the sex education received during school period is insufficient and therefore should be intensified. Moreover, the Ghana education services can also introduce extra-curricular activities where students can be taught on simple hand -made items that they can sell after school hours to serve as a source of income for most students. Conclusion: Teenage pregnancy has become a canker in the Ghanaian society, and has a long term effect on both the mother and child, as well as the economy on a whole. This is typically bothering as the youth of the nation are exposed to whole lots of psychological, physiological and environmental factors that prone them into falling victims of teenage pregnancy. However, with the engagement of parents/guardians, teachers, society, religious leaders and the government as a whole, this threat can be reduced. Recommendation: More awareness on the subject of adolescent, teenage pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and the family planning methods may be a step towards the reduction of this menace.