Adult Services For Young People Research Articles

Transition from child to adult services for young people with cancer

Cancers differ between children and adults, and young people who have survived malignant disease still need to mature into adulthood. Care pathways during transition to adult support should consider the age, cancer type, future risks of late effects from treatment and personal needs of the young person and family. A flexible, multidisciplinary approach is recommended but may require additional nursing skills. The development and introduction of appropriate and effective transition models are emerging as important factors in the individual patient's cancer journey experience. More research is needed to establish which protocol represents best practice.

Transition to adult services for children and young people with palliative care needs: a systematic review

ObjectiveTo evaluate the evidence on the transition process from child to adult services for young people with palliative care needs.DesignSystematic review.SettingChild and adult services and interface between healthcare providers.PatientsYoung people...

Constructing Adulthood in Discussions About the Futures of Young People With Moderate-Profound Intellectual Disabilities

Background This study examines how those planning futures for young people with moderate-profound intellectual disabilities invoke, deploy and interpret contrasting definitions of adulthood and perceived capacity for autonomy and self-determination. Methods Twenty-eight young people were followed through transition from children’s to adult services. This paper incorporates data from interviews with young people, their carers and transition staff. Results Two discourses around adulthood were identified. One positioned the young people as adults entitled unequivocally to self-determination, invoking policy injunctions to do so. The second qualified the young people’s adult status and claims to self-determination, emphasising the obdurate reality of intellectual disability. Conclusions Transition to adult services for young people with intellectual disabilities raises difficult questions about the relationship between vulnerable young people, families, professionals and society. Reducing these to rigid moral polarities of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ creates an unhelpful context for good decision making. A more constructive approach would include all stakeholders in discerning ‘the right thing to do’.

Transition to adult services for children and young people with palliative care needs: a systematic review

ObjectiveTo evaluate the evidence on the transition process from child to adult services for young people with palliative care needs.DesignSystematic review.SettingChild and adult services and interface between healthcare providers.PatientsYoung people...

Transition to adult services for young people with disabilities: current evidence to guide future research

This article outlines the evidence upon which best practice guidelines for transition to adulthood for young people with physical and developmental disabilities were developed in Ontario, Canada, through consensus activities. Evidence was gathered from published and unpublished literature and focus groups with young people, parents, community members, service providers and policy makers across the province. The evidence was then synthesized and analyzed by an expert panel. Guidelines were developed in the areas of collaboration, capacity-building, information, education, and research. This article focuses on the findings of this project as they relate to transition services and care. These best practice guidelines for the transition to adulthood for young people with disabilities offer a starting point to encourage service providers to work collaboratively with young people, parents, communities, governments, and researchers. The evidence from this project supports a move away from purely service-driven models of transition to holistic, lifecourse/lifespan approaches. Recommendations for future study and collaborative knowledge dissemination are provided.

Effect of PACT on Inpatient Psychiatric Treatment for Adolescents With Severe Mental Illness: A Preliminary Analysis

Effect of PACT on Inpatient Psychiatric Treatment for Adolescents With Severe Mental Illness: A Preliminary Analysis

Effect of PACT on Inpatient Psychiatric Treatment for Adolescents With Severe Mental Illness: A Preliminary Analysis

This study examined whether inpatient psychiatric treatment and forensic treatment and incarceration were reduced among adolescents and young adults with severe and persistent mental illness after they received services in the Program of Assertive Community Treatment (PACT). The pre-post evaluation compared length of inpatient treatment and forensic treatment or incarceration for the year before and after PACT enrollment. Participants (N=15) were their own controls. Annual psychiatric hospitalization fell from 66.2 days before enrollment to 8.7 days in the first year of PACT (p=.025, Cohen's d=.54). Similarly, combined days of inpatient psychiatric treatment and forensic treatment or incarceration fell from 104.1 in the year before enrollment to 24.1 days in the year after (p=.015, Cohen's d=.61). PACT services significantly reduced time in inpatient psychiatric treatment. These preliminary results may have implications for long-term treatment, service delivery, and cost of care for adolescents and young adults with severe and persistent mental illness.

406 Evaluating the transition from paediatric to adult services for young people with cystic fibrosis

406 Evaluating the transition from paediatric to adult services for young people with cystic fibrosis

Portfolio of health advice for young people with disabilities transferring to adult care.

The transition from paediatric to adult services for young people with complex disabilities is fraught with anxieties for families. To facilitate the transition process a portfolio comprising reports from parents, paediatrician and therapists was collected and given to the young person and family on leaving school. To evaluate the young people and their parents' views of the usefulness of portfolios in providing comprehensive picture of their health needs. A prospective study was performed. Eight families were interviewed and semi-quantitative feedback obtained using standardized questionnaires. Seven out of eight young people and their families were satisfied with the portfolios they received. All of them found the portfolios worthwhile and useful. A quarter of the families would like to have been consulted more about the content of the individual reports. Portfolios of health reports facilitate transfer of information when young people with disabilities move from paediatric to adult services. Ideally portfolios should be interagency, and include reports from education and social services.