Adolescents living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are struggling with accessing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, and COVID-19 has escalated the problem. The purpose of this review was to identify and assess the existing literature on the impact of the pandemic on SRH needs and access to services by adolescents in LMICs. A scoping review was conducted to collate findings on the topic. Searches were performed on eight databases. Data were extracted and categorized into various themes. After removing duplicates and performing a full-text reading of all articles, nine articles were included in our review. Our findings generated several themes related to adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include (1) limited access to sexual and reproductive health services, (2) school closure and increased rate of early marriages, (3) sexual or intimate partner violence during COVID-19, (4) disruption in maternity care, (5) adolescents’ involvement in risky or exploitative work, (6) intervention to improve sexual and reproductive health services during COVID-19, and (7) policy development related to adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Several recommendations were made on policies—for instance, the use of telemedicine and community-based programs as a way to deliver SRH services to adolescents during and after a pandemic.

The United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has set ambitious treatment targets known as Project 95-95-95, aiming to achieve 95% of people living with HIV knowing their status, 95% of diagnosed individuals on antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 95% of those on ART achieving viral suppression by 2025. Through a comprehensive analysis of Ghana's HIV/AIDS response, we evaluate the feasibility of Ghana's efforts in realising these targets. The discussion explores Ghana's achievements in HIV testing and diagnosis, ART coverage, and viral suppression rates, as well as challenges related to stigma, limited access to healthcare services, funding constraints, and data quality. Strategies such as strengthening prevention efforts, expanding access to ART, addressing stigma, and enhancing health systems are discussed as the way forward to advance Ghana's progress towards the UNAIDS 95-95-95 treatment targets. While Ghana has made significant strides in its HIV/AIDS response, achieving the 95-95-95 targets is a challenging yet realistic goal.

The Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) is a self-report scale used to assess general anxiety symptoms. Although the GAD-7 has been found to be a valid scale among adults, studies examining its psychometric properties among adolescents in high-income countries are notably limited and particularly non-existent in low- and middle-income countries. The current study addresses this lacuna by investigating the factorial validity, construct validity, internal consistency and discriminant accuracy of the GAD-7. Data were collected from 553 adolescents (boys = 231; average age = 16.85) recruited from a senior high school in Ghana, a sub-Saharan African country, using cross-sectional self-report methodology. The result supports a unidimensional structure of the GAD-7 that was invariant across gender. The GAD-7 correlates significantly with measures of anxiety, suicidal tendencies and mental well-being, suggesting construct validity. The internal consistency of the GAD-7, based on the mean inter-item correlation value of 0.24 and Cronbach’s a = 0.69, is adequate. The GAD-7 similarly discriminated between individuals at high risk of suicidal tendencies and depression from those with low or no risk, with area under curve values of 0.71 and 0.70, respectively. The GAD-7 is a reliable and valid measure to screen for generalised anxiety disorder among adolescents in Ghana.

Objective: While executive functioning (EF) tests are frequently administered in several Sub-Saharan African countries, studies examining their predictive relationships with real-world behaviors (i.e. ecological validity) are nonexistent. The present study investigated the predictive relationship between the Stroop Test, Controlled Oral Word Association Test, and Trail Making Test (TMT), a general cognitive screening test, Revised Quick Cognitive Screening Test (RQCST), and measures of activities of daily living, quality of life, and cognitive failures in Ghana. Method: A total of 50 literate urban dwellers who were diagnosed with moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI) were administered the neuropsychological tests and the self-report measures stated above. The informant version of the Cognitive failure questionnaire (CFQ) was completed by 50 ‘significant other’ who knew the patients very well. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the self and informant versions of the CFQ. Some EF test scores, specifically the Stroop Test, TMT and EF composite scores, correlated significantly with the outcome measures, with correlations ranging from .29 to .55. The RQCST explained 40–49% variance in the outcome measures, while the addition of the EF composite score not only resulted in 57–62% variance accounted for but also added incremental validity to the RQCST in predicting the behavioral measures, with the exception of cognitive failures. Conclusion: This study has shown that although EF test scores, specifically the Stroop Test, TMT and EF composite scores, can be used to predict real-world behavior after moderate TBI in Ghana, such predictions are likely to be limited. The general implication for cross-cultural neuropsychology is that the (limited) ecological validity of EF tests may not necessarily be affected by whether the tests were administered in settings where they have not been standardized. This argument is, however, tenable granted that the test taker’s backgrounds are similar to those on which the tests have been standardized.