Division of Adolescent Medicine

Welcome to the Division of Adolescent Medicine

The mission of the Division of Adolescent Medicine at CHOP is to improve the health and well-being of adolescents and young adults regionally, nationally, and globally. Research is an important part of this mission. Our research program aims to generate new knowledge in collaboration with trainees through clinical research, population-based research, translational research, community-based participatory research, clinical quality improvement initiatives, and medical education research. We are also committed to participating in activities designed to facilitate the translation of science and the best available research into practice, programs, and policy.

The Center for Parent and Teen Communication (CPTC) is a research and translation center that sits within the Division. CPTC has three broad goals:

  1. To reframe the expectations surrounding adolescence from a negative to positive lens.
  2. To translate and disseminate the best of knowledge about effective parenting strategies and research in character development.
  3. To explore how to best leverage the health care visit in order to support parents and youth to optimize strength-based communication.

Current Research Areas

Researchers in the Division work on a wide array of projects and make use of a range of research strategies and methodologies. We have ongoing research programs in the following areas:

  • Building on the strengths of teenagers by fostering their internal resilience
  • Health outcomes of disordered eating in adolescents of diverse weight ranges
  • Partnerships between parents, teens, and providers to enhance parent-teen communication and improve health outcomes
  • Medication adherence and sexual risk behavior among HIV+ youth
  • Adolescent Trials Network, to develop effective treatments for HIV+ youth
  • Psychosocial determinants of sexual behaviors and reproductive decisions
  • Independent self-management of chronic illness during adolescence
  • Informed consent and assent in pediatric medical settings