Synopsis

Adolescence is a time of transformational growth that differs fundamentally from that in earlier life. It is also a time of profound shifts in health and wellbeing, shifts that have been largely overlooked in health and public policy, especially in resource poor settings. In part for these reasons, adolescents and young adults have seen fewer health gains than other age groups across the globe. Furthermore, today’s adolescents face unprecedented levels of social, economic, and cultural change that have major implications for their current and future health and for that of the next generation. For these reasons the UN Secretary-General’s Every Woman, Every Child initiative will move forward as a Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents Health to 2030. The Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing brought together academics, UN agencies, international non-government organisations and young people to address, among other questions, why countries should invest in adolescent health and where the best investments lie?

This Grand Round will present a summary of the Commission’s findings and recommendations, and discuss the next steps of this work.

Speakers

Professor George Patton MBBS MD FRANZCP, Professorial Fellow of Adolescent Health Research at the University of Melbourne, and an NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow. He is the Group Leader of Population Health Studies of Adolescents at MCRI and a Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at RCH.

Professor Susan Sawyer MBBS MD FRACP, Chair of Adolescent Health at the University of Melbourne. She is the Group Leader of Health Services Delivery for Adolescents at MCRI and Director of the Centre for Adolescent Health at RCH.

Dr Pete Azzopardi MBBS MEpi FRACP, Research Fellow within the Population Health Studies of Adolescents at MCRI. He is an Honorary Senior Fellow at the Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, and an Honorary Adolescent Physician at RCH.

Dr Nicola Reavley PhD, NHMRC Career Development Fellow in the Centre for Mental Health at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne.

“The Lancet Commission is a powerful reminder that there is more to do to meet the unique needs of adolescents. And the compelling findings of the Commission must serve as an important wake-up call to individuals, organisations, and governments to support a new approach” – Melinda Gates