Adolescent pregnancies and girls' sexual and reproductive rights in the amazon basin of Ecuador: an analysis of providers' and policy makers' discourses

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Adolescent pregnancies are a common phenomenon that can have both positive and negative consequences. The rights framework allows us to explore adolescent pregnancies not just as isolated events, but in relation to girls' sexual and reproductive freedom and their entitlement to a system of health protection that includes both health services and the so called social determinants of health. The aim of this study was to explore policy makers' and service providers' discourses concerning adolescent pregnancies, and discuss the consequences that those discourses have for the exercise of girls' sexual and reproductive rights' in the province of Orellana, located in the amazon basin of Ecuador.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We held six focus-group discussions and eleven in-depth interviews with 41 Orellana's service providers and policy makers. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using discourse analysis, specifically looking for interpretative repertoires.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four interpretative repertoires emerged from the interviews. The first repertoire identified was "sex is not for fun" and reflected a moralistic construction of girls' sexual and reproductive health that emphasized abstinence, and sent contradictory messages regarding contraceptive use. The second repertoire -"gendered sexuality and parenthood"-constructed women as sexually uninterested and responsible mothers, while men were constructed as sexually driven and unreliable. The third repertoire was "professionalizing adolescent pregnancies" and lead to patronizing attitudes towards adolescents and disregard of the importance of non-medical expertise. The final repertoire -"idealization of traditional family"-constructed family as the proper space for the raising of adolescents while at the same time acknowledging that sexual abuse and violence within families was common.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Providers' and policy makers' repertoires determined the areas that the array of sexual and reproductive health services should include, leaving out the ones more prone to cause conflict and opposition, such as gender equality, abortion provision and welfare services for pregnant adolescents. Moralistic attitudes and sexism were present - even if divergences were also found-, limiting services' capability to promote girls' sexual and reproductive health and rights.</p

Adolescent pregnancies in the Amazon Basin of Ecuador: a rights and gender approach to adolescents' sexual and reproductive health

In the Andean region of Latin America over one million adolescent girls get pregnant every year. Adolescent pregnancy (AP) has been associated with adverse health and social outcomes, but it has also been favorably viewed as a pathway to adulthood. AP can also be conceptualized as a marker of inequity, since it disproportionately affects girls from the poorest households and those who have not been able to attend school

Mulheres enfrentando as violências: a voz dos operadores sociais Women facing violence: the voice of social workers

Este artigo tem o objetivo de esclarecer a rota crítica de mulheres do município de São Leopoldo no enfrentamento da violência, por meio da análise das práticas discursivas de um grupo de trabalhadores de instituições sociais. Realizou-se uma seleção intencional de instituições dos setores saúde, educação, policial, jurídico-legal e comunitário e foram entrevistados dois representantes de cada setor. A partir das práticas discursivas dos operadores, percebemos que a violência praticada contra as mulheres é um problema de elevada frequência e baixa resolubilidade institucional. No processo da rota crítica - o caminho percorrido pelas mulheres para romper com a violência - muitas não recebem o acolhimento nos serviços. Apesar da criação do Centro de Referência para Mulheres, ainda há muito a ser feito para efetivar as políticas públicas. Os depoimentos dos trabalhadores sociais foram enunciados a partir da posição institucional que ocupam, e, nesses discursos, eles minimizaram os pedidos de ajuda das mulheres, culpabilizando-as. Os operadores ligados às organizações comunitárias foram os mais solidários e compreensivos. Os resultados da pesquisa mostram que não há uma única rota ou itinerário ideal; pelo contrário, a rota percorrida pelas mulheres é longa, dolorosa e nem sempre eficiente. Nem todas as rotas empreendidas pelas mulheres em São Leopoldo puderam ser conhecidas, porém o fato de outros serviços estarem sendo disponibilizados na cidade, certamente possibilitará o traçado de outros caminhos.<br>This article investigates the critical path followed by women facing violence in the city of São Leopoldo through the analysis of discursive practices of a group of workers from social institutions. An intentional selection of institutions was carried out, including the following areas: health, education, police force, law and community. Two representatives of each sector were interviewed. Based on the workers' discursive practices, we noticed that the violence that is perpetrated against women is a problem of high frequency and low institutional resolution. Throughout the Critical Path process - the way followed by women in order to break with violence - many users are not sheltered by the services and, despite the creation of a Reference Center for Women, there is still a lot to be done to enforce the public policies. The social workers' discourses were enunciated from the institutional position they occupy, and in these discourses they minimized the women's request for help, saying that they were guilty. Workers from community organizations were the most sympathetic ones. The results show that there is not a single path or an ideal itinerary; rather, the path followed by many women is long, painful and, sometimes, inefficient. Not all the paths followed by the women in São Leopoldo could be investigated; however, the fact that other services are becoming available in the city will certainly enable the design of other ways