Exploring Barriers to Healthcare Access for Adolescent and Young Adult women in Low-and Middle Income Countries

Access to timely, accurate, and culturally acceptable diagnostic services for women remains critically limited in many settings. Structural barriers, fragmented health systems, limited technology access, and entrenched gender inequities delay diagnoses, and restrict treatment access. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), these challenges are compounded by socioeconomic disparities, and limited health education, resulting in significant inequities that perpetuate preventable illness, particularly among adolescent girls and young adult women.

Emerging innovations such as self-sampling, point-of-care testing, digital health tools, and decentralized service delivery offer promising opportunities to narrow diagnostic gaps. However, their successful adaptation in LMICs requires contextual tailoring, equity-centered implementation, and meaningful engagement of women and youth to ensure sustainable impact.

Adolescent girls and young adult women in LMICs continue to face challenges with accessing timely, accurate, and culturally appropriate diagnostic services. These gaps contribute to preventable maternal mortality, spread of disease through undiagnosed and untreated infections, and long-term disease complications. This exacerbates gender inequities and hinders universal access to healthcare.

This Research Topic seeks to advance multidisciplinary dialogue on evidence-based solutions, policy reforms, and community-led strategies to close diagnostic gaps in, particularly adolescent girls and young adult women. By amplifying actionable insights, we aim to accelerate progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a focus on SDG 3 (promoting health and well-being for all), SDG 5 (focusing on Gender Equality) and SDG 10 (to reduce any form of inequality).

Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

1. Innovations in Self-Sampling and Diagnostics for Women’s Health in LMICs
• Comparative accuracy and feasibility of self-collected vs. provider-collected samples in LMIC contexts.
• Adaptations of RE-ASSURED diagnostics for low-resource environments.
• Cost-effectiveness, scalability, and integration into existing health systems.
• Expanding self-sampling and point-of-care testing beyond sexual health to other women’s health priorities (e.g., cervical cancer, anemia, metabolic diseases).

2. Youth and Adolescent Perspectives in Preventive Care and Diagnostics in LMICs
• Research capturing youth voices in shaping health services for adolescent and young adult women.
• Adolescent-friendly care models addressing stigma, consent laws, and confidentiality.
• Role of digital tools, peer-led interventions, and school/community-based approaches in preventive health and diagnostics.
• Challenges of affordability and insurance coverage for adolescents accessing diagnostic services.

3. Equity in Women’s Health Diagnostics: From Community to Clinic in LMICs
• Mobile clinics, outreach programs, and home-based screening models for women’s health.
• Strengthening referral systems and linkage-to-care pathways across the health system.
• Overcoming logistical, cultural, and financial barriers to accessing diagnostic services.
• The role of insurance schemes and financial protection models in expanding diagnostic equity for women.

4. Digital and Decentralized Solutions for Adolescent and Young Women Health in LMICs
• Mobile health (mHealth) platforms, telemedicine, and SMS-based systems for women’s health information and care.
• Portable diagnostic devices integrated into community programs.
• Use of digital platforms to expand insurance enrolment and service coverage for women.
• Ethical, regulatory, and data privacy considerations for digital health in LMIC contexts.

5. Gendered Barriers in Access to Diagnostic Services in LMICs
• Influence of gender norms, stigma, and power dynamics on women’s healthcare-seeking behavior.
• Intersection of gender with poverty, rurality, disability, and education in shaping diagnostic access.
• The role of insurance availability and affordability in reducing or exacerbating gendered barriers.
• Case studies and policies that have improved diagnostic equity for women and girls.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

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Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: women's health, healthcare access, LMICs, low-income settings, barriers to access

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