Original articleIncreasing Delivery of Preventive Services to Adolescents and Young Adults: Does the Preventive Visit Help?☆
Section snippets
Study design and sampling
MEPS is an annual survey sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality that consists of a set of household surveys of health, insurance coverage, and healthcare utilization and expenditures of the United States civilian noninstitutionalized population. It uses an overlapping panel design in which a new cohort is recruited annually to complete face-to-face interviews at five-time periods across 2 years [22]. The present analysis utilized three MEPS data sets: the Full-Year
Demographic descriptions of adolescents and young adults
The adolescent analytic sample was 50% female, 56% white, 21% Hispanic, 13% black, 4% Asian, and 6% other. Thirty-three percent were at ≥400% FPL, 31% at 200–≤400% FPL, 20% at 100–<200% FPL, and 16% at <100% FPL (Table 1). Greater than 85% of adolescents had full-year insurance, and of those with any past-year healthcare utilization, 69% had received a preventive visit. The young adult analytic sample was 59% female, 62% white, 17% Hispanic, 12% black, 5% Asian, and 4% other. Thirty-four
Discussion
The present study found strong evidence linking receipt of a preventive visit to increased receipt of preventive services. Receipt of a preventive visit was associated with an increased likelihood of receiving preventive services: this held true for every service variable measured at highly significant levels. This study assessed a range of services; including services readily available outside the clinic setting (e.g., blood pressure). To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate
Funding Sources
This study was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the United States. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (under #U45MC27709, Adolescent and Young Adult Health Capacity Building Program); with supplemental support from HRSA grant #UA6MC27378.
References (28)
- et al.
Does delivering preventive health services in primary care reduce adolescent risky behavior?
J Adolesc Health
(2011) - et al.
Forgone health care among US adolescents: Associations between risk characteristics and confidentiality concern
J Adolesc Health
(2007) - et al.
More evidence supports the need to protect confidentiality in adolescent health care
J Adolesc Health
(2007) - et al.
Access to medical care for adolescents: Results from the 1997 Commonwealth fund survey of the health of adolescent girls
J Adolesc Health
(1999) - et al.
Adolescent and young adult preventive care: comparing national survey rates
Am J Prev Med
(2015) - et al.
The health status of young adults in the United States
J Adolesc Health
(2006) - et al.
Adolescent and young adult health in the US in the past decade: little improvement and young adults remain worse off
J Adolesc Health
(2014) - et al.
Health promotion for adolescents in primary care: Randomized controlled trial
BMJ
(2002) Standardized screening for suicidal adolescents in primary care
Pediatrics
(2010)
Computer-facilitated substance use screening and brief advice for teens in primary care: An international trial
Pediatrics
Preventive care for adolescents: Few get visits and fewer get services
Pediatrics
Sexually transmitted disease surveillance 2015
Association between adolescent preventive care and the role of the Affordable Care Act
JAMA Pediatr
Cited by (14)
Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment in Pediatric Primary Care, School-Based Health Clinics, and Mental Health Clinics
2023, Psychiatric Clinics of North AmericaGender Differences in Routine Health Maintenance Examinations Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic
2023, Journal of Adolescent HealthCitation Excerpt :This general decrease is consistent with other findings regarding health visits and preventive services during the pandemic [1–5]. Routine HMEs are associated with higher rates of preventive services for adolescents and young adults, such as anticipatory guidance, blood pressure checks, and influenza immunization [13]. This reduction in HMEs demonstrates a loss of these services at an age when many chronic conditions are first diagnosed [13].
Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment in Pediatric Primary Care, School-Based Health Clinics, and Mental Health Clinics
2023, Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North AmericaAdolescents’ Patterns of Well-Care Use Over Time: Who Stays Connected
2021, American Journal of Preventive MedicineCitation Excerpt :More recently, adolescents’ transition into adult care has been examined,6,7 yet fewer studies have examined WCU transitions from childhood into adolescence—a vulnerable time when adolescents may experience health issues and healthcare disconnection, particularly male adolescents.8 Past studies examining adolescents’ WCU are mainly cross-sectional in nature and report overall WCU rates, WCU rates by age and sex, or WCU cohort trends.9–11 For example, younger adolescents (aged 11–14 years) rather than older adolescents (aged 15–19 years) attended more past-year well-care visits,9 and past-year checkup rates increased from the year 2000 (63%) to the year 2012 (74%).10
- ☆
Conflict of interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Disclaimer: This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.