Recommendations: Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care

Care and close supervision of diabetes management is increasingly shifted from parents and other older adults throughout childhood and adolescence; however, the shift from pediatric to adult health care providers often occurs very abruptly as the older teen enters the next developmental stage, referred to as emerging adulthood,1 a critical period for young people who have diabetes Though scientific evidence continues to be limited, it is clear that early and ongoing attention be given to comprehensive coordinated planning for seamless transition of all youth from pediatric to adult health care2,3 A comprehensive discussion regarding the challenges faced during this period is found in the ADA position statement “Diabetes Care for Emerging Adults: Recommendations for the Transition from Pediatric to Adult Diabetes Care Systems”3 The National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) has materials available to facilitate the transition process (http://ndep.nih.gov/transitions/) and The Endocrine Society (in collaboration with the ADA and other groups, has developed transition tools for clinicians and youth/families (http://www.endo-society.org/clinicalpractice/transition_of_care.cfm) This slide includes recommendations for transitioning teens with diabetes into adulthood4125References Arnett JJ. Emerging adulthood. A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. Am Psychol 2000;55:469-480. Weissberg-Benchell J, Wolpert H, Anderson BJ. Transitioning from pediatric to adult care: a new approach to the post-adolescent young person with type 1 diabetes. Diabetes Care 2007;30:2441-2446. Peters A, Laffel L, for the American Diabetes Association Transitions Working Group. Diabetes care for emerging adults: recommendations for transition from pediatric to adult diabetes care systems: a position statement of the American Diabetes Association, with representation by other groups. Diabetes Care 2011;34:2477-2485. American Diabetes Association. Standards of medical care in diabetes—2013. Diabetes Care 2013;36(suppl 1):S43.