Journal of Adolescent Health Launches New Webpage "For Parents & Teens"

SAN FRANCISCO, April 8, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

The Journal of Adolescent Health (JAH), the Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, has added an important new online resource, "For Parents & Teens," to directly connect adolescents, young adults, and their families to practical information and insights from trusted healthcare professionals in the field.

"Over the past decade, the Journal of Adolescent Health has published the very best scientific research focusing on ways to improve the health and well-being of adolescents and young adults. Our primary readership has always been health professionals who provide clinical care, conduct research, or develop public health programs or policies to benefit young people," explained Editor-in-Chief Charles E. Irwin, Jr., MD, distinguished professor of pediatrics and director of the Division of Adolescent & Young Adult Medicine at the University of California (UCSF) School of Medicine. "We now see an opportunity to expand our audience and support the broader community. Our new JAH website features the best content and most important scientific findings, presented in a format that is helpful and understandable to everyone."

"For Parents & Teens" is designed to improve the lives of adolescents and young adults. It addresses the often confusing issues teens face every day and the questions that concern their parents. Recent features include: Should Teen Girls Need a Prescription for Birth Control Pills?, Juvenile Gang Membership in the US Doesn't Conform to Popular Stereotypes, Who Gets Addicted to Video Games?, Antisocial Media Exposure and Cyberbullying Behavior - Is There a Link?, Twitter Chatter about Marijuana, and Insurance Billing Violates Confidentiality for Young People on their Parents' Health Plan.

"Our authors have been really excited about the opportunity to communicate their findings directly to parents and teens. Researchers spend so much time talking just to each other about their research. The chance to put these findings directly into the hands of the people most affected by them is a real revelation," commented Managing Editor Tor D. Berg, University of California San Francisco.

Each feature story is based on a study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, which is made freely available to all readers. Parents and teens are invited to participate in a dialog with their peers and healthcare providers via the JAH Facebook page.

Andrea Boccelli, Publisher, added, "Elsevier is pleased to support making the scientific research published in the Journal of Adolescent Health more accessible and understandable to teens and their parents. The internet is often the first place parents turn for answers and it's vital to identify a reliable resource. We are enthusiastic about this new initiative to share JAH's trusted, peer-reviewed scientific content in terms all teens and parents can understand.

Dr. Irwin recommends that pediatricians, adolescent medicine specialists, adolescent psychologists and psychiatrists, and family physicians consider adding a link to "For Parents & Teens" to their practice websites as a service to their patient communities.

About The Journal of Adolescent Health   

The Journal of Adolescent Health is a multidisciplinary scientific journal that seeks to publish new research findings in the field of Adolescent Medicine and Health ranging from the basic biological and behavioral sciences to public health and policy. It is the official publication of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine (SAHM), http://www.adolescenthealth.org, a multidisciplinary organization committed to improving the health and well-being of adolescents. One of the Society's primary goals is the development, synthesis, and dissemination of scientific and scholarly knowledge unique to the health needs of adolescents. To meet this goal, the Society established the Journal of Adolescent Health in 1980. http://www.jahonline.org

According to Journal Citation Reports®, published by Thomson Reuters, Journal of Adolescent Health has a 2013 5-Year Impact Factor of 3.753, and is ranked 6th of 117 journals in Pediatrics.

About Elsevier 

Elsevier is a world-leading provider of information solutions that enhance the performance of science, health, and technology professionals, empowering them to make better decisions, deliver better care, and sometimes make groundbreaking discoveries that advance the boundaries of knowledge and human progress. Elsevier provides web-based, digital solutions - among them ScienceDirect, Scopus, Elsevier Research Intelligence and ClinicalKey - and publishes over 2,500 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and more than 33,000 book titles, including a number of iconic reference works. Elsevier is part of RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries. http://www.elsevier.com

Media contact
Tor D. Berg
Journal of Adolescent Health
+1-415-502-1373
Tor.Berg@ucsf.edu