Bak M, Gunnarsson L, Ljungberg B, Sjogren TC; International Conference on AIDS.

Int Conf AIDS. 1994 Aug 7-12; 10: 374 (abstract no. PD0102).

Univ. of Goteborg, Sweden.

OBJECTIVE: Voluntary Walk-in clinics for 13-23 year olds in Goteborg, Sweden have been in operation since 1990. The purpose of these clinics is to offer individual counselling and assistance in medical and psycho-social areas. Preventing undesired pregnancies and STD:s, as well as reducing the threat of a spreading of HIV, are seen as central tasks. Every year more than 12,000 young men and women visit these five clinics, which operate with a cross-disciplinary approach, where medical doctors, nurses, midwives, social workers and psychologists work in close cooperation. An evaluation of the first three years of operation had as its primary goal to answer two major research questions: (1) Do the programs meet the needs and expectations of the users?, and (2) How does the specific cross-disciplinary approach function in relation to program goals? METHODS: Research methods included questionnaires to a representative sample of visitors (n = 448), qualitative interviews with 51 young men and women, and individual and group interviews with staff members in all five clinics. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Results from questionnaires and interviews are showing that there is a strong positive attitude among the young men and women towards the way these programs are functioning. The clinics, their programs and personnel, enjoy the unreserved confidence of the visiting adolescents. They are perceived as oases of trust, understanding, respect, and professional competence. The reasons for this successful program outcome, as reflected in the data, are likely to be found in the cross-disciplinary personnel composition in these small, non-bureaucratic and egalitarian treatment units where staff motivation and commitment are high. Today there are more than 100 similar Youth Clinics in all of Sweden.

Publication Types:

• Meeting Abstracts

Keywords:

• Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• Adolescent
• Adolescent Health Services
• Ambulatory Care Facilities
• Counseling
• Demography
• Evaluation Studies
• Female
• HIV Infections
• Health Services Needs and Demand
• Humans
• Interviews as Topic
• Male
• Program Evaluation
• Questionnaires
• Sweden
• Trust

Other ID:

• 94370446

UI: 102209276

From Meeting Abstracts