Adolescent males in the City of Buenos Aires: gender-based barriers to health care and prevention.

This study is based on our previous work, in which we found evidence of the difficulties in including the experiences and needs of adolescent males in the design of clinical models aimed at that age group. We identified a need to explore the subjective dimension of gender in the practices of the healthcare sector directed at adolescent males, in order to determine if they constituted barriers to advancement in this field. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 professionals from different disciplines who made up healthcare teams, as well as 14 adolescent males using healthcare services in the City of Buenos Aires. Additionally, group techniques were employed with adolescent male secondary school students, and in-depth interviews were conducted with key informants. We were able to determine that institutional dynamics do not adequately respond to the risks faced by adolescent males - for whom hegemonic constructions of gender play an important role - given that they are based on exclusionary biopolitical paradigms.