[1] The health of our children and young people matters to us, and it matters to them. We should help them understand what makes and keeps them healthy and what to do when they have worries, are not feeling so good, or are simply ill.[2] While health promotion, the process of enabling people to manage and improve their own health, plays a key role. a key significant and early point of private contact with health services for a teenager is their GP. While GPs continue to improve in terms of their confidence and ability to make a child patient feel comfortable, it is not yet a guaranteed good experience for teenagers—they may not always while talking to a doctor and some express feeling embarrassed while seeking advice from their GP[3] Thus, two changes are required Firstly, better professional development. GPs do have some training in child development but it is not enough After all, learning how to talk to 12-18 year olds, and even more importantly, how to listen to what they have to say and encourage them to speak up; and to be confident that they understand what is said to them before they leave, takes time Secondly, we can include young people as the "teachers" here to help GPs learn how to interact effectively with their younger patients. GPs would benefit from feedback about their manners, the quality and simplicity of their communication and their way of explaining treatments and next steps - going beyond theory to learning by doing. [4] In addition. children and young people are those with the time and energy to put into making our communities healthy. As enthusiastic learners, teenagers contribute through voluntary activities far more than adults and are deeply interested in the health services. And in doing so they are able to educate themselves in ways which can change lives.
