Premium
Primary care services provided to adolescents in detention: a cross‐sectional study using ICPC‐2
Author(s) -
Haller DM,
Sebo P,
Cerutti B,
Bertrand D,
Eytan A,
Niveau G,
Wolff H,
Narring F
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2010.01716.x
Subject(s) - medicine , mental health , cannabis , family medicine , public health , health care , primary health care , primary care , alcohol abuse , psychiatry , environmental health , pediatrics , nursing , population , economics , economic growth
Aim: The aim of this study was to provide a detailed description of the health problems for which primary care services are provided to adolescents in a juvenile detention facility in Europe. Methods: We reviewed the medical files of all detainees in a juvenile detention centre in Switzerland in 2007. The health problems for which primary care services were provided were coded using the International Classification for Primary Care, version 2. Analysis was descriptive, stratified by gender. Results: A total of 314 adolescents (18% female) aged 11–19 years were included. Most (89%) had a health assessment and 195 (62%) had consultations with a primary care physician; 80% of the latter had a physical health problem, and 60% had a mental health problem. The most commonly managed problems were skin (49.7%), respiratory (23.6%), behavioural (22.6%) and gynaecological problems (females: 23.9%); 13% females (no males) had sexually transmitted infections (STI), and 8.7% were pregnant. Substance abuse was common (tobacco: 64.6%, alcohol: 26.2%, cannabis: 31.3%). Conclusion: In addition to health problems known to be more prevalent among young offenders, such as mental health problems and STI, these adolescent detainees required care for a range of common primary care problems. These data should inform the development of comprehensive primary care services in all juvenile detention facilities in Europe.