A review of teenagers' perceived needs and access to primary health care: implications for health services

Abstract

The government has stated its commitment to provide equality of access to health care for all and has emphasized the need to take account of users' views. The aim of this review was to search for evidence of adolescents' perceived needs for and access to primary health care services and to evaluate and report on the evidence found. Methods used were systematic searching of data bases and direct contacting of health and related organizations. The main finding was that a substantial minority of teenagers has health-related problems which are not met by current services. The main barriers to accessing primary health care were a perceived lack of confidentiality, embarrassment and unsympathetic staff. Reported access to a school health nurse varied widely (between 5% and 83%). The conclusions were that the barriers to accessing services as identified by teenagers are amenable to staff training, and that taking account of users' views could act as a stimulus for such training.