School girls opt for pills as teen pregnancies increase

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More parents are opting to put their schoolgoing girls on contraceptives following increased cases of teenage pregnancies. However, this has come too late in the day because many of the girls have already given birth. A majority of teen mothers have gone back to school.

Dr Gerald Mutisya, a gynaecologist at Kitui Referral Hospital who is in charge of reproductive health in the county, notes that between January and May, 2,200 girls aged between 15 and 19 attended antenatal care in various facilities. In the same period, about 50 girls aged between 10 and 14 sought similar services while 500 girls delivered between January and May.