Health-related, help-seeking behaviors in female Mexican-American adolescents.
OBJECTIVE
To explore and describe the health-related, help-seeking behaviors of young female Mexican-American adolescents.


METHODS
Qualitative exploratory-descriptive design using focus groups.


METHODS
Community recreation centers.


METHODS
18 female Mexican-Americans ages 10-16 years residing in a South Central state.


METHODS
A demographic information form and semi-structured interview designed for the study.


RESULTS
Subjects described two themes of help-seeking behaviors: seeking help for physical health problems and preventive healthcare from formal sources (i.e., community health clinics, family physicians, and public schools), and seeking help for concerns about pubertal development and pregnancy from informal sources (i.e., their mothers, aunts, sisters, and friends).


CONCLUSIONS
While young, female Hispanic adolescents may seek help from formal sources for preventive healthcare services and physical health problems not related to sexuality, they tend to seek help from informal sources for psychosocial and sexuality issues. Community-based interventions should be developed that focus on the importance of this pattern of help-seeking behaviors for young female Hispanics.
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Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA.
D000293:Adolescent; D016497:Adolescent Health Services; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D015438:Health Behavior; D006293:Health Promotion; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D011247:Pregnancy; D012736:Sex Education; D014481:United States