Educational actions to have a responsible sexuality in adolescents through the extracurricular work of the university
COMUNICACIÓN

 

Educational actions to have a responsible sexuality in adolescents through the extracurricular work of the university

 

Acciones educativas para una sexualidad responsable en adolescentes desde la extensión universitaria

 

 

Wilfredo de Jesús Almeida Gacives1, Maritza Borges Acosta2, María Eugenia Bolufé Vilaza3

1 Bachelor in Education. Specialist in Geography. Assistant professor. "Juan Bruno Zayas" University Polyclinic Cifuentes. Villa Clara. Cuba. E-mail: policifu@capiro.vcl.sld.cu
2 Bachelor in Psychology. MA. in Medical Psychology. Associate Professor. "Juan Bruno Zayas" University Polyclinic Cifuentes. Villa Clara. Cuba. E-mail: maritza@capiro.vcl.sld.cu
3 MD. Ma. in Satisfactory aging. Assistant professor. "Juan Bruno Zayas" University Polyclinic Cifuentes. Villa Clara. Cuba. E-mail: policifu@capiro.vcl.sld.cu

 

 

ABSTRACT

The extracurricular work of the Cuban universities has been systematic and deep through the last years for the sake of being able to have an educational intervention in the social aspects that can damage the community, the family, the individual and environmental health ; that´s why a group of educational actions are developed in a community area of "Juan Bruno Zayas" University Polyclinic from Cifuentes municipality in Villa Clara province, with the objective not only to improve aspects related with pregnancy in the adolescence but also to exert an influence in the strengthening of values in students and professors who are implied in their development.

MeSH: Sexuality, pregnancy in adolescence /prevention & control, university extension, education, medical.

RESUMEN

La labor extensionista de las universidades cubanas ha sido sistemática y profunda a través de los últimos años en aras de lograr intervenir educativamente en los aspectos sociales que pueden dañar la salud de la comunidad, la familia, el individuo y el medio ambiente; por ello se desarrolla un conjunto de acciones educativas en un área comunitaria del Policlínico Universitario "Juan Bruno Zayas" del municipio Cifuentes en la provincia Villa Clara, con el objetivo de mejorar no solo la situación relacionada con el embarazo en la adolescencia sino que también se trata de influir en el fortalecimiento de valores en estudiantes y profesores implicados en su desarrollo.

DeCS: Sexualidad, embarazo en adolescencia /prevención & control, extensión universitaria, educación médica.

 

 

The higher education centers are called to influence in the development of the social context, through the extracurricular work of the university, favoring the responsibility, the community health and life quality of the individuals.

The developing processes in the Cuban university at present are defined for the search of ways, procedures and alternatives that lead to the formation, investigation and extension in function of the development of society based on the strengths and potentialities that characterize them1.

The National Program of University Extension is conceived to develop this core function of the universities, starting from assuming it as a process oriented to the educational work that promotes and elevate health, and life quality as well as the comprehensive general culture of the university community and its social environment2.

It is well-known that the university extension constitutes the best expression in a creative integration university-society; so that it becomes a fundamental aspect of the institutional action and fostering activity for its social commitment, allowing its programs to acquire an extraordinary relevance in the daily work of higher education centers3.

Activities, tasks and the projects of extracurricular actions are relevant in the National Program of University Extension, which are considered as the most efficient manner to carry out in a dynamic way the problems related to the intra-university and extra-university community2,4,5.

The adolescent population is one of the most susceptible age group to undergo transformations in the community. The psycho-sexual sphere is the most sensitive personality component within this age group. They are willing to be adult and the desire to check their reproductive capacity interpreted as indispensable virtue to demonstrate the new woman or man condition can lead them to be negligent in regard to sexuality6,7.

In Cuba, the average age to start sexual relations is more and more lowly; the younger they have the first coitus, the greater the risks for pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

For a long time adolescence was considered a step between childhood and adulthood; but today there are enough reasons to consider it as a stage inside the process of human being's development, and exclusive of the species. It comprises the ages from 10 to 19 years approximately, and it is defined as the period in which the individual progresses from the beginning of the secondary sexual characteristics up to the sexual maturity8.

The problem of pregnancy in the adolescence affects to several regions of the world and Cuba is not exempt of it; the increment of risks, including abortions in this age group, it is higher than that of all women in reproductive ages, and it continues charging very unfavorable effects upon sexual health, those that can be irreversible, when leaving immediate consequences as the maternal death, and sequels like the necessity to carry out a hysterectomy at early ages9. The importance that the Cuban State offers to the formation of the new generations, the strengthening of family functions in society and health promotion and disease prevention as pillars of the community medicine, they state the importance and relevancy of this topic.

In Cuba, different institutions are developing jointly actions and programs to evaluate the levels of the adolescents' sexual and reproductive health, among them stand out: the Ministry of Public Health, the Cuban Women Federation, the National Center of Sexual Education, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education with the extracurricular work of the universities.

However, the opinion of the authors of this article is that there aren't enough activities in the health area of "Juan Bruno Zayas" University Polyclinic from Cifuentes municipality in Villa Clara province, where the following regularities were found:

  • High pregnancy incidence in the adolescence.
  • Inadequate follow up to preconception risks.
  • Inadequate preparation of the families with adolescent children in the topics related to a responsible sexuality.
  • Unsteadiness in the participation in the committee of some pillar sectors and community organizations like: the Cuban Women Federation and the Women and the Family Orientation House.

The authors designed educational actions that contribute not only to modify health manifestations in the community in a positive way, through the university extension work developed by this polyclinic, but also to consolidate the university-community relationship and the strengthening of values in the students and workers.

Educational actions for a responsible sexuality in adolescents through the university extension

Objective: to strengthen the preventive-educational work in the community through activities developed by the university facilitators (students and professors) as a part of the extracurricular work of the university.

  1. To impart lectures and workshops about the characteristics of the adolescence and preconception risks by university facilitators in educational institutions.
  2. To qualify the Health Basic Teams and the Work Basic Groups in topics related with sexuality in the adolescence.
  3. To strengthen the links among the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Public Health, the Cuban Women Federation, the Woman and Family Orientation House and the Ministry of Culture to achieve collective actions in benefit of the community.
  4. To have an impact in the most vulnerable families imparting educational chats.
  5. To spread educational messages about a responsible sexuality in the community areas with massive influx of people through the available mass media: Institutional radio stations, bulletin boards, posters, etc.
  6. To carry out investigations related to the topic and to present them in scientific societies and events.
  7. To constitute groups of sexual orientation with the participation of education centers of the community, where from early ages the students get familiar with topics about responsible sexuality.

The authors consider that the activities that comprise this educational intervention contribute to strengthen the values in the students, when developing the extracurricular work that at the same time modifies the health picture of the community, increasing the links between the population and the formative institution of the human resources in health.

Through the concretion of these actions is shown what the university extension activities mean for the educational work, to promote health in the community, to contribute to the human improvement of students and professors and to perfect the university-society relationship.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES

1. Horruitiner Silva P. La Universidad Cubana: el modelo de formación. La Habana: Editorial Félix Varela; 2008.

2. Ramos Feddee Y, Abreu E. La Extensión Universitaria en el centro universitario: realidades y retos. Cuaderno de Educación y Desarrollo [Internet]. 2010 [citado 22 Ene 2015];2(22):[aprox. 23 p]. Disponible en: http://www.eumed.net/rev/ced/22/rfar.htm

3. Cedeño Ferrín J, Machado Ramírez EF. Papel de la Extensión Universitaria en la transformación local y el desarrollo social. Rev Hum Med [Internet]. 2012 [citado 17 Feb 2015];12(3):[aprox. 14 p.]. Disponible en: http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1727-81202012000300002&lng=es&nrm=iso&tlng=es

4. Medina Yera EC. Modelo Pedagógico de formación del protagonismo del futuro profesional desde la Extensión Universitaria en el contexto de la universalización. [Tesis]. Santiago de Cuba: UCP «Frank País García»; 2011.

5. Machado Barbery F, Calá García EJ. Caracterización del entorno social comunitario como extensión universitaria en ciencias médicas. EDUMECENTRO [Internet] 2014 [citado 25 Feb 2015];6(2):[aprox. 6 p.]. Disponible en: http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2077-28742014000200019&lng=es&nrm=iso&tlng=es

6. Arrué Hernández MJ. ¿Cómo demuestro que te amo? La Habana: Editorial CENESEX; 2005.

7. Pérez Pérez M, Sosa Zamora M, Amarán Valverde JE, Pinto MR, Arias Acosta D. Algunos aspectos relacionados con el conocimiento sobre sexualidad en adolescentes de un área de salud. MEDISAN [Internet] 2009. [citado 12 Mar 2015];13(3): [aprox. 3 p.]. Disponible en: http://bvs.sld.cu/revistas/san/vol13_3_09/san18309.htm

8. Infante Pedreira OE. Adolescencia. En: Núñez de Villavicencio Porro F. Psicología y Salud. La Habana: Editorial Ciencias Médicas; 2001.

9. López Rodríguez Y. Embarazo en la adolescencia y su repercusión biopsicosocial sobre el organismo de la madre y de su futuro hijo. Rev Cubana Enfermer [Internet]. 2012 [citado 12 Marz 2015];28(1):[aprox. 10 p.]. Disponible en: http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0864-03192012000100004&lng=es

 

 

Submitted: October, 8 2015.
Accepted: November, 11 2015.

 

 

Wilfredo de Jesús Almeida Gacives. Policlínico Universitario "Juan Bruno Zayas". Cifuentes. Villa Clara. Cuba. Correo electrónico: policifu@capiro.vcl.sld.cu

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