title: Sexual and reproductive health of young people with disability in Ethiopia: a study on knowledge, attitude and practice: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  As is common in developing countries, in Ethiopia young people with disabilities (YPWD) are more likely than the general population to be illiterate, unemployed and impoverished. They often lack equal access to information and education for reasons ranging from barriers regarding physical access to services to varied special learning needs. Very little is known about knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of YPWD regarding sexual and reproductive health (SRH) related issues. We, therefore, aimed to assess the KAP of 426 YPWD in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2012. Data were collected by trained interviewers using a structured questionnaire covering socio-demographic information, as well as information on KAP regarding SRH.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Only 64.6% of YPWD were aware of SRH services. Radio and TV were mentioned as the main sources of information by 62.2% of the participants. 77.9% had never had a discussion about SRH topics with their parents. Even though 96.7% of the respondents had heard about HIV, 88% had poor knowledge about ways of preventing HIV. Perception of the risk of getting infected with HIV was found to be generally low in YPWD; only 21.6% believed that they were at risk of acquiring HIV.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study, in general, demonstrated that there is a lack of comprehensive knowledge, appropriate practice and favorable attitude of YPWD regarding different SRH-related issues. Our findings thus clearly indicate the need for strategies and programs to raise SRH-related awareness and to help YPWD to develop the appropriate skills and attitudes needed for a healthy reproductive life.
authors: Institute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. tigist.alemukassa@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.
authors: Tigist Alemu
authors: TA
authors: Kassa
authors: Institute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. Tobias.Luck@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.|LIFE-Leipzig Research Center for Civilization Diseases, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany. Tobias.Luck@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.
authors: Tobias
authors: T
authors: Luck
authors: Gondar College of Medicine and Health Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia. 2yemeserach@gmail.com.
authors: Assegedech
authors: A
authors: Bekele
authors: Institute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. Steffi.Riedel-Heller@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.
authors: Steffi G
authors: SG
authors: Riedel-Heller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D005002:Ethiopia; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D060728:Reproductive Health / Q000592:standards*; D034121:Reproductive Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult