Why and How should Paediatricians be Trained in Adolescent Health?

Adolescence is a critical period of human development characterized by drastic physical, psychosocial, cognitive and emotional changes, and represents a window of opportunity for effective prevention and health promotion with effects throughout the life-course.

Adolescents make up 16% of the world’s population. The social, emotional and physical environments in which adolescents live have significant influence on their health.

Investment in adolescents delivers a triple dividend: improving health at the present, enhancing it throughout the life course, and contributing to the health of future generations.

Adolescents are neither a grown up child nor a small adult. As so, competency-based education in adolescent health care should be mandatory for Paediatricians. Residents should be provided with the basic knowledge and skills to take appropriate care of adolescents, whatever sub-specialty they may choose.

In Portugal, at the Department of Paediatrics, Hospital Santa Maria, residents spend a whole month in the Adolescent Medicine Division during their General Paediatrics training. A competency-based educational programme emphasizing the developmental and contextual aspects of adolescent health, and enhancing competencies in consultation, interpersonal communication and interdisciplinary care, has been developed. The teaching methods used to support this training are diverse, including training in communication skills, case-scenario discussions and weekly interdisciplinary meetings.