Adolescent and young adult healthcare - 11 to 25
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Welcome! This page tells you about how we work to support young people in our hospitals.
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150,000 young people age 11 to 25 years attend our hospitals each year in more than 100 specialties |
Adolescent and young adult healthcare covers an age-range from 11 to 25 years and the information here is aimed at young people, parents and carers as well as healthcare teams.
Fact:
Every young person has a right to developmentally appropriate healthcare, this means care that matches their needs at the time of life they are in when they attend. Healthcare Transition is the process of learning to gradually become more confident and able to look after your own health.
To support good transition care in all areas of the Trust, we have put together resources to help patients, families, health and care teams. For example, our website the 11to25Hub, which addresses the common questions asked and our Own It project, which is about who gets to make the decisions about young people’s care.
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Everyone working with your people can use some simple steps to prepare them for and support them into early adulthood.
Healthcare Transition is a period of time when young people are preparing for transfer to adult services. It is a process whereby young people aged 11 to 25 years, especially those with long-term conditions, are given support, education and guidance during the challenges of adolescence. Parents, families, peers, teachers, trainers and healthcare teams play an important role.
This approach is called developmentally appropriate healthcare and helps them to be empowered to manage their own healthcare needs. It is individually tailored to the needs of each young person and practiced by all members of the multidisciplinary team.
As a someone working in healthcare, you have precious opportunities to make a difference to how well young people engage with health matters and to support their journey to being independent, confident adult patients.
Young people attend clinics in more than 100 different specialties at our hospitals. There are some clinics that have dedicated young people teams. Many others manage healthcare transition in the normal clinics, either in children’s services or adult services.
Clinics
Young people attend clinics in more than 100 different specialties at our hospitals. There are some clinics that have dedicated young people teams. Many others manage healthcare transition in the normal clinics, either in children’s services or adult services.
Healthcare for Young People is not about ‘the condition’ but about the person and making sure that everyone gets care that works for them in all of the more than 100 different specialties where young people attend.
Every clinical team looking after young people is expected to provide developmentally appropriate care and support healthcare transition.
It is important that any young person aged 11 to 25 years has an opportunity to ask questions important to them about their health and they are encouraged to do so.
Self-referrals
At this point, there are no adolescent and young adult clinics which take direct referrals.
Be sure to speak to the clinic you attend to get the right help as a young person, or as a carer of a young person. Contact details for services are available in the service directory.
If you have a learning disability of look after a young person with a learning disability or autism, ask the team about a referral to the learning disability specialist nurses for support.
GP referrals
At this point, there are no adolescent and young adult clinics which take direct referrals.
When you refer a young person to a service, please include information about their developmental needs or any vulnerabilities which may need support.
Where required, you can contact the Learning Disability & Autism Team (LD+A team by bleep (1172), phone (020 3312 2272) or email (imperial.disability@nhs.net).
Contact
Contact the specialty you need directly using the details from the service directory.
We are dedicated to making sure that young people get their care in a way that meets their needs.
This is why we have a team called ‘The Young People Big Room’ where a group of people including young people, doctors, nurses, therapists, managers, secretaries and many others meet every week to make care for young people at our hospitals better.
The coaches for the YP Big room are currently Dr Katie Malbon and Dr Claudia Gore.
The learning disability + autism team (LD+A) operates across sites supporting patients (young people and adults). They have many helpful resources and your clinical team can contact them to support you.
Patient information
General information for young people and their families about healthcare transition:
Condition specific advice and resources
Many (but not all) patient support groups or charities for health conditions, such as e.g. Diabetes, Crohn’s Disease etc., have advice and resources for adolescents and young adults, their families and healthcare teams on their websites.
To find out more, search for the charity or patient support group for your condition.
Resources for supporting complex health needs
For information and sources of support for young people approaching adulthood with complex health needs:
- Transition to adult services - Together for Short Lives
- A guide for parents/carers of adults age 16+ who may not be able to make decisions: MASMC - MASMC (myadulestillmychild)
Improvement and research
The Trust, together with Imperial College London is conducting many studies together with other researchers, which focus on the health and mental health of young people.
If you want to find out about research involving young people, please speak to your clinical team. You can also have a voice, by getting involved in the Imperial College Young People Advisory Network
Researchers and clinicians from the Trust contributed to The Inbetweeners NCEPOD report - A review of what is going well and what could go better in healthcare transition is working in the UK (2023)