Feature ArticleTransitioning Youth With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder to Adult Health Care
Introduction
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental diseases in childhood,1 and > 60% of children with ADHD will have symptoms that persist into adulthood.2 Each year in the United States approximately 750,000 children with long-term health care needs transition from pediatric health care to adult health care.3 The health care transition is a process that requires an individualized, multifaceted, collaborative approach by the interprofessional health care team, adolescent, and family to ensure the adolescent has continuity of appropriate health care services as they move from the child-focused to the adult-focused health care system.4, 5, 6 For youth with ADHD, an organized, coordinated, and systematic transition of care from pediatric health care providers to adult health care providers is essential to optimize health and promote maximum functioning.4, 5, 7 Our purpose in this study was to describe the 6 core elements of Got Transition model and recommend strategies for nurse practitioners (NPs) to implement this approach for successful transition of adolescents with ADHD to adult health care services.5
Section snippets
ADHD
Eleven percent of US children 4-17 years old (6.4 million) have been diagnosed with ADHD. Rates of ADHD diagnosis differ by gender, with 13.2% of boys and 5.6% of girls having been diagnosed with ADHD during their lifetime.8 Although the prevalence of children ever diagnosed with ADHD varies substantially by state, from a low of 5.6% in Nevada to a high of 18.7% in Kentucky, the overall percentage of US children with an ADHD diagnosis has steadily increased since 2003.8, 9
ADHD is often
Facilitators and Barriers to Transition of Care
Transition to adult-centered health care is not an event but rather a process that occurs over time and is a part of normal adolescent development.6 The transition process should begin in adolescence and serve as a purposeful and planned movement from a child-centered to an adult-oriented health care system.4 The AAP (2011) recommends that, by age 14, youth have an established transition plan of care that addresses medical, social, and psychiatric care.4 Transition plans should be formulated
The Got Transition Model
The Got Transition model is an evidence-based approach for implementation of recommendations for adolescent transition to adult health care established by the AAP, American Academy of Family Physicians, and American College of Physicians.4, 5 Got Transition has been studied in both primary care and specialty settings and has been found to be an effective guideline for the transition process.5, 18, 19 Updated in 2014, the current model consists of 6 core elements that comprise the basic
Conclusion and Recommendations
ADHD commonly persists into adulthood; therefore, it is crucial that health care providers develop, utilize, and validate transition pathways to bridge the gap between child health care and adult health services for youth with ADHD. NPs can facilitate the effective transition of pediatric patients with ADHD to adult health care providers by applying the 6 core elements of the Got Transition model,5 a systematic, evidence-based approach for transitioning youth to adult health care services.
All authors are affiliated with the School of Nursing at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Dianna D. Inman, DNP, CPNP-BC, is an assistant professor. She can be reached at [email protected].
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Cited by (0)
All authors are affiliated with the School of Nursing at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Dianna D. Inman, DNP, CPNP-BC, is an assistant professor. She can be reached at [email protected].
Leslie K. Scott, PhD, PPCNP-BC, is an associate professor and pediatric track coordinator.
Mollie E. Aleshire, DNP, FNP-BC, is an assistant professor. The authors thank Beverly Hilton, medical librarian and liaison for the College of Nursing Medical Center Library at the University of Kentucky.
In compliance with national ethical guidelines, the authors report no relationships with business or industry that would pose a conflict of interest.