Adolescent health

Adolescent health, or youth health, is the range of approaches to preventing, detecting or treating young people’s health and well being (WHO, 2001). The term adolescent and young people are often used interchangeably, as are the terms Adolescent Health and Youth Health.

Young people's health is often complex and requires a comprehensive, biopsychosocial approach (NSW Dept of Health, 2010).

Youth Health includes adolescent medicine as a speciality, along with other primary and tertiary care services.

Key health services for young people:

^Youth Attitudes

Capacity building organisations support the Youth Health sector by providing access to information and resources, conducting research and providing training.

Youth health services ('one-stop-shops' for young people) are specialist services providing multi-disciplinary, primary health care to young people. Focusing on engaging disadvantaged young people, they deliver flexible and unique services to young people in relaxed and comfortable youth-friendly environments. Youth health services work in partnership with other government and non-government services. Youth health services provide a range of entry-points and non-threatening services (such as creative arts, basic services such as showers and laundries, a drop in service, sports and recreational facilities), which encourage young people to connect with the service on their own terms. They also provide informal links to other support services and sectors including education, housing, financial support and legal services, offering support to young people who are dealing with complex issues. Youth health services understand the need to respond immediately to young people’s requests for support and assistance and they share a common operating philosophy, which values social justice, equity, and a holistic view of young people’s health and well being.

Some young people engage in risky behaviours that affect their health and therefore the majority of health problems are psychosocial. Many young people experience multiple problems. These behaviours are established as a young person and go on to become the lifestyles of adults leading to chronic health problems. Social, cultural and environmental factors are all important (Chown et al. 2004). Young people have specific health problems and developmental needs that differ from those of children or adults: The causes of ill-health in adolescents are mostly psychosocial rather biological. Young people often engage in health risk behaviours that reflect the processes of adolescent development: experimentation and exploration, including using drugs and alcohol, sexual behaviour, and other risk taking that affect their physical and mental health (AIHW, 2007). The leading health related problems in the age group 12 – 24 years are (AIHW, 2007):

...
Wikipedia