Qualitative Study Links E-Modules With Adolescent Preconception-Care Awareness

An exploratory qualitative study in Bali, Indonesia, found that adolescent participants and relevant health and technology professionals perceived preconception-health e-modules as a way to increase awareness and use of preconception care services. Because the research was based on interviews with 12 informants rather than a controlled comparison, it did not quantify changes in awareness or service uptake or establish that the e-module caused an increase in utilization. Researchers conducted the study in Sidemen Karangasem District.

The informants included adolescents, parents of adolescents, heads of health centers, obstetricians and gynecologists, and information technology experts. Adolescent participants were members of Sekee Trune Truni, a culture-based youth organization, and were 10–24 years old, unmarried and living in the Sidemen sub-district. Participants were selected purposively, and each was willing to take part.

The researchers gathered data through in-depth interviews conducted at participants’ residences, with interviews lasting approximately 30 minutes, and analyzed the resulting material thematically. Four principal themes emerged from the interviews: adolescents’ awareness of preconception health, their intention to use preconception care services, their perception of actual use, and their perception of the usefulness of those services. Within these themes, participants described new information, preparation for a healthy pregnancy beginning in adolescence, shame about visiting care services, negative stigma, easy service procedures, available online services and perceived benefits of prevention.

These findings show that informants associated the e-module not only with knowledge about preconception health but also with expectations and experiences surrounding service use. The authors concluded that the preconception-health e-module increases awareness and utilization of preconception care services for adolescents. Online education was described in the study background as more flexible than face-to-face methods, while the interviews included the availability of online services as a subtheme.

The findings present e-modules as a way to expand the range of preconception-health education available to adolescents, including information that can support preparation for a healthy pregnancy and help them understand the perceived benefits of prevention. The study’s evidence remains exploratory. The reported themes may therefore reflect the perspectives of the participants rather than population-level effects.

The authors presented the results as an understanding of optimal preconception-health education methods and as support for using e-modules to broaden adolescent education, without a trial-level test of effectiveness or health impact.

Subject of Research: How adolescents and service professionals perceive e-modules for preconception care in Bali, Indonesia

Article Title: Use of e-modules to increase awareness and utilization of preconception care services in adolescents: an exploratory qualitative study

Article References: Ani, L. S., Arya Utami, N. W., Darmayani, I. G. A. S., Mogi, I. K. A., Mertasari, L., Utami Ds., N. K. A. D., & Sumiati, L. N. (2026). Use of e-modules to increase awareness and utilization of preconception care services in adolescents: an exploratory qualitative study. BMC Health Services Research. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-026-15561-4

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12913-026-15561-4

Keywords: preconception care, adolescent health, e-modules, digital education, health services, qualitative study, online learning, Indonesia, increase, awareness, utilization, preconception