Utilization status of sexual and reproductive health services among high school students in assosa zone; western ethiopia, 2021.

Abstract Introduction: - Sexual and reproductive health service is critical for youths; because it does not only set the stage for health beyond the reproductive years; it also affects the health of the next generation. Youth is one of life’s most fascinating and complex life stages and accompanied by special sexual and reproductive health needs.Objective: - This study was aimed to determine; utilization status of sexual and reproductive health services and associated factors among high school students in Assosa Zone Western Ethiopia. Methods: - School-based quantitative cross sectional study was carried out among all students from systematically selected in high school of Assosa Zone. Total of 400 samples were proportionally allocated for the stratum and eligible students in were interviewed. Pretested structured questionnaires were employed to obtain quantitative data. The collected data was interred into Epidata version 3.1 and analysed using SPSS version 25 software.Results: - Over all utilization of sexual and reproductive health services by youth students was 32% in the past six months. Counseling services was the major (33.6%) service utilized and Private clinic was the major 73% place of sexual and reproductive health service utilized. Having pocket money [95 %CI (AOR=2.81(2.35, 5.09)], being sexually active [95 %CI (AOR=1.82(1.25, 3.26)], parental discussion [95 %CI (AOR=2.78(1.59, 4.67)], peer education was also significantly associated with utilization of sexual and reproductive health services. Conclusions: - Over all utilization of sexual and reproductive health service among youth students in the past six months was 32%. To improve youth’s sexual and reproductive health service utilization; increasing accessibility, awareness creation at all levels as well as making the service confidential should be interventional areas.