Adolescent Medicine

A doctor listens to a teenage girl's heart.

Adolescence is the transitional period of time between childhood and adulthood. This is a time characterized by major physical, emotional and cognitive development. The adolescent years can be fun and exciting, as teens begin their search for independence. Sometimes, though, adolescents partake in risk-taking behavior that can have long-lasting and serious effects on their physical and emotional health. At the Adolescent Medicine Program, we take the time to screen for risk-taking behaviors and to talk with our teens about how these behaviors can have a long-term impact on their overall health.

Our clinic follows both federal and Kentucky confidentiality guidelines and regulations for patient privacy of teenagers, which we will discuss with you and your teen at their first visit.

Adolescent Medicine Clinic is a Title X clinic!

What does that mean?

We provide comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services.

Services include: contraceptive (birth control) services, pregnancy testing and counseling, sexually transmitted disease services and preconception health services.

As a Title X Clinic:

  1. Family planning services are voluntary and offered in a competent, nondiscriminatory, trauma-informed manner, respecting client confidentiality. We work to ensure equitable and quality service delivery consistent with nationally recognized standards of care.
  2. We provide family planning services without subjecting individuals to any coercion to accept services or to employ or not employ any particular methods of family planning.
  3. Our client values guide our clinical decisions.
  4. Our family planning services are inclusive and demonstrate health equity by providing services without regard to religion, race, color, national origin, disability, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex characteristics, social position, number of pregnancies or marital status. Culturally and linguistically appropriate services are respectful of and responsive to the health beliefs, practices and needs of diverse patients.
  5. We do not provide abortion as a method of family planning.
  6. We provide adolescent-friendly health services and encourage family participation in a minor’s decision to seek family planning services. However, we protect teen confidentiality for family planning related services.

Adolescent Medicine Specialties

Our expert team of physicians, nurses, social workers, nutritionists and psychologists uses a comprehensive approach to our multidisciplinary adolescent care. We treat every patient as a unique person with unique needs — emotional, physical and psychological. 

Services we offer include:

  • Evaluation and management of behavioral health concerns including:
    • Anxiety
    • Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
    • Behavioral issues related to bullying
    • Depression
    • Disordered eating
    • Evaluation and management of eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder
    • Gender identity concerns
    • Post-traumatic stress disorder
    • Self-harm
    • Sleep problems
    • Substance use
    • Suicidal thoughts
    • Nutritional counseling and weight management
  • Reproductive and sexual health care, including:
    • Birth control counseling
    • Help with sexual and gender identity concerns
    • Management of period concerns, including unusual vaginal discharge, irregular periods and heavy periods
    • Pelvic exam including cervical cancer screening
    • Sexually transmitted disease screening and treatment
  • Sports physicals
  • Well-child checkups and immunizations

Through our collaborative Young Parents’ Program, providers with the Division of Adolescent Medicine work closely with an OB-GYN who specializes in adolescent care to provide prenatal and postnatal care for teen mothers and their newborns.

Information & support

Addiction prevention

Depression

Eating disorders

Suicide

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