Adolescent Medicine

Learn how to diagnose and treat adolescent patients in a hospital setting.

You will interact with patients on the Adolescent Inpatient Floor and in the Emergency Room of Oishei Children’s Hospital.

You will attend inpatient drug rehabilitation sessions for adolescents and see patients in the university health care clinic and in the sports medicine clinic. You will also participate in a school-based clinic when possible.

Learn to Identify, Treat Issues Specific to Teens

You will be formally exposed to specific teen problems and ways to specifically address them.

You will learn to:

  • be able to interview the teenager in an age appropriate fashion, employing the concepts of patient confidentiality
  • be able to perform a thorough physical exam including a pelvic exam in the female adolescent, and know the principles of sports physicals 
  • understand the psychosocial aspects of a teenager’s development
  • understand the stages of puberty with the concomitant hormonal and physical changes that bring a child from the prepubertal stage into full reproductive maturity
  • understand the variations in timing of pubertal events so as to be able to diagnose when a child is delayed in the pubertal development
  • be able to evaluate a child for causes of delayed puberty as well as precocious puberty
  • know the appropriate health screening for well teenagers
  • understand how the problem of substance abuse (alcohol, street drugs, and cigarettes) impacts upon teenagers and know how to assist teenagers in getting appropriate help
  • understand teenage nutritional needs and the impact of eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia and obesity)
  • understand issues pertaining to adolescent sexuality and be able to obtain an adequate history from an adolescent about sexual practices and drug use
  • know how to diagnose and treat sexually transmitted diseases
  • understand contraception methods for use by teenagers
  • understand the early signs of adolescent depression and suicide
  • understand the impact of teenage pregnancy and teenage abortion
  • know how to initially manage sports related injuries
  • understand the dilemmas of the homeless adolescent, the teenager who is “out of control,” and the incarcerated youth
  • know how to treat acne

Care Team

As part of a teaching facility, pediatric residents, combined Internal Medicine/Pediatric residents, medical students, nurse practitioner students, social work students and other allied health professionals are also present in the Adolescent Clinic at various times.

Year Taken

  • PGY-3

Additional rotations may be done as a selective.

Length of Rotation

4 weeks

Clinical Site

Community linkages as part of the resident rotation have been developed with the following agencies:

  • Renaissance Campus: drug and alcohol treatment program for adolescents and young adults
  • Buffalo Centre Partial Hospital Program: treatment program for adolescents and adults with eating disorders
  • Compass House: youth shelter for runaway and homeless adolescents
  • GLYSS: Gay and Lesbian Youth Services of Western New York
  • Family Justice Center: domestic violence multi-disciplinary center

You will visit each site as a community awareness experience, meeting with staff and participants.