Healthcare workers' treatment of adolescents: the danger of structural violence

Navigating a sensitive developmental stage, adolescents and young people must learn about the biological and social aspects of safe and meaningful intimate relations. For many, access to confidential sexual and reproductive healthcare services is a crucial part of this process. Based on the findings of a qualitative study, this articles describes how the unsupportive and hostile attitudes of healthcare workers might discourage help seeking, constituting "structural violence' towards young people