Delivering quality care: adolescents’ discussion of health risks with their providers

doi:10.1016/S1054-139X(01)00342-1

Journal of Adolescent Health

Volume 30, Issue 3, March 2002, Pages 190-195

https://doi.org/10.1016/S1054-139X(01)00342-1 Get rights and content

Abstract

Purpose: To compare adolescents’ report of topics they wanted to discuss with their providers with what they actually discussed, and whether they talked to their providers about their self-reported health risks.

Methods: We analyzed the 1997 Commonwealth Fund Survey of the Health of Adolescent Girls, a nationally representative sample of 6728 in-school adolescent boys and girls in 5th through 12th grade. Respondents reported on health risks, whether they believed their provider should discuss certain topics, and whether their provider did talk about health-related topics. Logistic regression was used to compare proportions and assess the associations among variables.

Results: Adolescents most frequently discussed healthy dietary habits (49%), weight (43%), and exercise (41%) with their clinicians but most frequently wanted to discuss drugs (65%), smoking (59%), and healthy dietary habits (57%). Overall, 70.9% of the sample reported at least one of eight potential health risks, but 63% of these adolescents had not spoken to their doctor about any of these risks. Using logistic regression models, having a female provider (odds ratio [OR] 1.41), obtaining health care information from a doctor (OR 1.72) and from the Internet (OR 1.50), speaking privately with their provider (OR 1.45), and reporting more total risk factors (OR 1.59) were each associated with having discussed any risks.

Conclusions: Adolescents want and need to discuss health care issues with their providers but often do not. Providing quality preventive care to adolescents will require increased physician screening and counseling about these issues.

Section snippets

Subjects

We analyzed data from the 1997 Commonwealth Fund Survey of the Health of Adolescent Girls, a nationally representative stratified school-based sample of 6748 adolescent boys and girls. Eligible schools were sampled from a database of 80,000 public, private, and parochial schools in the United States maintained by the National Center for Educational Statistics; the survey methods have been previously described [8]. A total of 1665 girls in grades 5–8, 1921 girls in grades 9–12, 1551 boys in

Results

Adolescents most frequently reported wanting to discuss drugs (65%), STDs (61%), smoking (59%), and good eating habits (57%) with their physicians, and adolescents most frequently discussed good eating habits (49%), weight (43%), and exercise (41%) with their clinicians. Overall, 70.9% of adolescents reported having at least one of the eight risk factors in Table 1. The most common risk factor was high stress (37.3%), followed by alcohol use (34.0%), smoking (27.2%), low exercise levels

Discussion

Nearly three-quarters of the adolescents in this nationally representative study reported at least one risk factor that may negatively impact their health. Additionally, many of these adolescents think that their provider should discuss these topics. Health care delivery to adolescents should provide information needed to make healthy decisions about risk behaviors, and all guidelines for providing care to adolescents recommend screening and counseling for healthy and risky behaviors 10, 11, 12

Acknowledgements

This research was supported in part by a Generalist Faculty Scholar’s Award from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

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Original articleDelivering quality care: adolescents’ discussion of health risks with their providers

Abstract

Section snippets

Subjects

Results

Discussion

Acknowledgements

Child Abuse Negl

J Adolesc Health

J Adolesc Health

Preventing tobacco use among young peopleA report of the Surgeon General

Youth at RiskOne in Four at Jeopardy

Predictors of health risk behaviors among young adultsAnalysis of the National Population Health Survey

Can J Public Health

The relationship of daily stress and health-related behaviors to adolescents’ cholesterol levels

Adolescence

Clinical characteristics of women with a history of childhood abuseUnhealed wounds

JAMA

Access to Health Care Part 1Children

Vital Health Stat 10

Guidelines for Adolescent Preventive Services

Recommendations for Preventive Pediatric Health Care III

Bright Futures

Original article
Delivering quality care: adolescents’ discussion of health risks with their providers