Correlates of sexual health service use amongst unmarried young adults in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Background: In Nepal, sexual relationships outside of the traditional arranged marital system are increasingly common. Despite the availability of modern sexual health care, research on how to effectively deliver sexual health services to unmarried young adults in Nepal is limited. Objective: This study examined key theoretical correlates between Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Service Use and actual sexual health service use among unmarried young adults (aged 18 to 25) in Kathmandu, Nepal. Methods: Unmarried young adults between 18 and 25 were recruited from colleges and universities in the Kathmandu area. A total of 110 women and 93 men completed the survey ( Findings and conclusions: Approximately 37% of participants reported engaging in sexual intercourse, with 55.7% reporting condom use during most recent intercourse. Less than half (39.1%) were aware of available sexual health services, and less than one-third (26.6%) were aware of Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Over a third of participants (40.9%) reported experiencing unwanted sexual contact, and 5.9% had a history of forced sexual intercourse. The actual reported sexual health service use within the past 12 months was 13.9%. Logistic regression analyses showed higher perceived youth friendliness of the health system (OR: 1.19; CI: 1.01-1.39;