The nation’s pediatricians are getting new guidance on how to help teenagers with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families navigate the transition to adulthood.
In a policy statement published this month in the journal Pediatrics, the American Academy of Pediatrics is spelling out the steps that physicians should take as children move toward age 18 when they will be legally recognized as adults.
Pediatricians should start discussing the transition to adulthood and what level of assistance children are likely to need between the ages of 12 and 14. They should work together with patients, their caregivers and their teachers, always advocating for the least restrictive decision-making environment, according to the guidance.