Autonomy and decision making for health promotion in adolescence

Abstract

Autonomy in decision making regarding health issues is a set of skills that develops as part of self-care agency. Adolescence is an important time to begin fostering this autonomy. Providing health-promoting care to adolescents must occur in the context of developmental considerations, legal concerns, and ethical principles. Implications for health care providers include developing trust with the adolescent, teaching the family how to enable the adolescent's self-care, considering the use of advance directives, protecting the rights of minors and parents, implementing confidentiality guidelines concerning the adolescent's care, and formalizing the processes of consent/assent and dissent for health care.