Mount Sinai Hospital, Adolescent Health Center

Adolescents account for more than 20% of New York State’s population.

The behavioral patterns established during adolescence, a crucial developmental period, will determine young people’s current health status and their risk for developing chronic diseases later in life. Several public health and social problems either peak or start during these years—smoking, sexually transmitted infections, and teen pregnancies—and the financial costs of these preventable health problems are high. Best practices for meeting the needs of young people and preventing the downward spiral of poor behavioral choices have emerged in recent years, including the nationally recognized program at the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center. However, no report exists that lays out the necessary elements of a successful approach to meeting the health and behavioral health needs of adolescents. NYHealth awarded Mount Sinai Hospital a grant to develop a blueprint that captures the key aspects of its successful model to help other organizations replicate its effective approach.

Under this grant, Mount Sinai Hospital identified and cataloged practices used by its adolescent health center that have contributed to its successful approach with adolescents in need of a broad array of primary care services. The blueprint included the interventions, approaches, and processes used to deliver and expand integrated health services. It also included information on the human and financial capital necessary to establish, expand, and sustain this integrated, comprehensive model. Mount Sinai Hospital also increased awareness among policymakers about the best practices and informed decision-makers and advocates about opportunities to adopt and sustain comprehensive services tailored to adolescents. Lastly, Mount Sinai Hospital worked to increase the knowledge and skills of primary care clinicians and providers to meet the specialized needs of adolescents by developing ongoing training and educational opportunities based on practices identified in the blueprint.

Read the report, “Blueprint For Adolescent And Young Adult Health Care.”