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Adolescent Health Toolkit

Adolescents Health Toolkit: For Parents

Being the parent of an adolescent is no easy job, but this is an important time in your child's life - a time when good health will be the foundation for a healthy, productive adulthood. The information below has been assembled to help you work with your adolescent to help keep him or her as healthy as possible.

Why Annual Checkups Are Important

Your teen goes through lots of changes within a year. During the teenage years, his or her body is growing and changing faster than it will at any other point in life. If your child is healthy, you may think that they don't need to have a checkup every year. You may just take them to their health care provider when they are sick, but not for a regular checkup. Teens need yearly checkups, too!

Think of your body like a car. To keep your car running, you have to do certain things-like fill the gas tank or put air in the tires. Every now and then, you have to take your car in for a tune-up. Even if your car is running well, the mechanic will check to make sure you have enough oil and all the parts are working correctly. Sometimes the mechanic will find problems that you didn't even know about. They can fix those problems so that you won't have bigger problems later (like getting stuck on the side of the road).

Your teen's yearly visits are like those tune-ups for your car. The visit is a chance for your child's primary care provider to ensure he or she is growing and developing well and to make sure that there are no signs of major health problems. It is also a great time for you to ask questions about things-like how to deal with your child who is going through puberty, how to deal with mood swings, or things that may be bothering you or your child.

Your teen's primary care provider doesn't just listen to the teen's heart and check their ears-they are also able to talk to your teen about how things are going at school or home, in relationships, or the tough choices that they are having to make. They can also talk with you and help you to understand what your teen is going through, give you tips on raising a teenager, and help you to be the best parent you can be. For example, some parents are not sure how to talk with their children about drugs or sex. Your teen's provider has special training in these areas and can help you with these tough topics. You may get as much out of the visit as your teen does!

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What Happens at the Yearly Checkup?

At the yearly checkup, your teen's primary care provider will perform a physical exam. This includes: listening to the heart and lungs; looking in the eyes, ears, nose and throat; pressing on the abdomen; checking the muscles, bones, and reflexes; and looking at the skin. The provider will also ask some questions to find out how your teen is developing and whether they are having problems in a certain area. Sometimes the provider may ask you or your teen to fill out a questionnaire before the visit, or they may ask these questions while you are in the room.

Your teen may need his or her vision and hearing checked. This is only required during certain years, but if you ever have concerns about how your child sees or hears, the provider can check on those things as needed. The provider may also need to test for problems like anemia or urine infections - this is done by taking a sample of your child's blood or urine if there is a concern for these problems.

The primary care provider will talk to you and your teen about whether shots (immunizations) are up to date. If not, the provider will recommend which immunizations your child should receive (see immunizations section below). The provider will also talk with both you and your teen about specific things to keep your teen healthy-like brushing teeth, wearing helmets and seatbelts, getting a good night's sleep, and eating a balanced diet.

Finally, at some point during the visit, your teen's provider will probably ask you to step out of the room. This is important because it gives the teen an opportunity to talk with the provider about things that may be embarrassing or scary to them -- things they may not want to discuss with you in the room. Your teen's provider will keep this information confidential (see confidentiality section below) unless he or she believes that your child is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else, or if he or she believes that someone is harming your child.

These links can give you more information about the yearly checkup:

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Will Your Teen Need to Get Shots?

Maybe. Most teenagers have not had any shots (also called immunizations or vaccines) since Kindergarten, but they need some shots in order to stay healthy. Shots aren't just for little kids! You should check with your teen's provider when they go for their yearly visit to see if they need any of these shots:

  • Tdap: This booster shot provides protection from pertussis (whooping cough), diphtheria and tetanus (lockjaw). This shot is important because it also protects other individuals around your teen who could get sick from whooping cough. Want to hear what whooping cough sounds like? Click here.
  • HPV: This vaccine can help protect your teen against genital warts (caused by human papillomavirus) and some types of cervical cancer. Both boys and girls should get this vaccine.
  • Meningococcal meningitis: This vaccine helps protect your teen against an infection of the fluid around the brain. If your teen were to get this infection, they could die within a matter of hours-so it is very important to be protected by getting the vaccine.
  • Flu: It is important to get a flu shot every year. Individuals who get sick with the flu have high fevers, body aches, cough and runny nose, and usually feel miserable. Some people can get very sick and end up in the hospital, or even die. Getting the flu shot every year will help protect your teen against the types of flu spreading in your community. Be sure to ask your provider if your teen can get the nasal spray instead of the shot-the spray is acceptable if your teen doesn't have asthma or other major medical problems.

If you need more information about immunizations, here are some reliable sources:

Immunization tools that you may find useful:

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What about Confidentiality?

Don't be surprised if your teen's provider asks you to step out of the room during the checkup. This is a very important time for your teen to feel open to talk to the provider one-on-one. Sometimes your teen may want to talk to your primary care provider about very personal things -- things he or she may not want to discuss with you in the room. When your teen has a visit with your primary care provider, what they talk about is confidential-this means that your teen's provider will not share that information with anyone else. The only time that the provider is required to share that information is if he or she thinks your teen is in danger of hurting themself or someone else, or if someone is hurting your teen. In those cases, the provider is required by law to get help for your teen (and this means they will have to tell someone else what your teen told them).

Having a person in which to confide is very important to teens. If a teen believes a provider is going to tell other people about his or her problems, the teen is less likely to go to the provider. This means that teens are not getting the regular checkups they need in order to stay healthy. If teens don't come for their checkups, it also means their providers don't have the opportunity to talk with them about how to make good choices that will keep them healthy.

Parents play an important role in keeping teens healthy, so the teen's provider will want to hear from you during the yearly checkup. Say what's on your mind and make sure that the provider knows your concerns.

Your provider wants to work with you to keep your teen healthy. Just because they talk to your teen with you out of the room doesn't mean they want to keep everything hidden. Your provider will often encourage your teen to talk with you about things that are bothering them or about risky choices that they make. If you don't give your teen the space to talk with their provider alone, however, those discussions may never happen, and your teen's health could be in jeopardy because they aren't talking about what is really happening in their life.

Want to learn more about teenagers and confidentiality? Check out this fact sheet with information about Tennessee Youth Laws and Teen Rights.

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How Do You Find A Provider?

It is important that your teen has a primary care provider-someone who knows all about their health, who sees them for their yearly checkups and also when they are sick. Try to stick with one provider-hopping around from one provider to another could mean your child won't get the good care that they need, or important information about your child's health may be lost.

Need help finding a provider? Try the resources below:

If you have TennCare, then your teen will be assigned a primary care provider-this is a provider who can see them for their yearly checkups and also when they are sick. You can call the primary care provider to set up an appointment time. If that provider is not convenient for you, or you wish to select another provider, call your managed care organization (the number is on your insurance card) and ask for another provider.

If you have other types of health insurance, check with your insurance company to see what providers are covered in your network. The contact number for the insurance company should be on your insurance card.

If you don't have insurance:

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How Do I Find More Information?

Being the parent of a teenager can be tough! No one expects you to know all the answers. If you have questions about your teen's health, first ask your primary care provider. They know your teen the most and can give you good information about how your teen can stay healthy.

If you want to look for more information about specific health questions, check out some of these web sites:

Health Information

Parenting Tips

Information about Development

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Is Your Teen in Danger? Do You Need Help Now?

If you think that your teen is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else, you should ask for help NOW! There are people who want to help you and your teen. Please call one of the following numbers:

  • 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
  • 911

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Want Some Help Organizing Your Child's Health Care?

Keeping track of all the important documents related to your child's health can be a challenge! FREE tools are available to help you build a care notebook to store this important information.

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