Throughout our Connecting Care podcast series, we’ve focused on different communities of adults with HIV and/or substance use disorders (SUDs). One population we haven’t yet covered is the adolescent and young adult population. Treating youth with SUDs requires additional expertise and insight into their physical, emotional, mental, and social development.
This month, Dr. Jessica Taylor talked with Dr. Sarah Bagley - a researcher and the Medical Director of the Catalyst Clinic at Boston Medical Center. During the conversation, Jessica and Sarah talk about the substance use risks for youth; developing an SUD; overdose prevention; special legal considerations of treating youth; and how their needs differ from those of older adults.
“During the teen years, what are you supposed to be doing? It’s actually this really exciting time. You’re supposed to be learning to make decisions on your own, and actually separate from your parents a little bit, and really develop some independence. And so we don’t want to stunt any of that. Even as they engage with us in treatment, we want to be able to continue to encourage them to do those things because it’s totally developmentally appropriate. How do we support this young person and actually try to give them as many choices as we can so that they can really determine and chart their own course." --Dr. Sarah Bagley
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