PURPOSE:The World Health Organization (WHO) revised the Global Standards for Quality Health Care Services for Adolescents and a linked Adolescent Health Competencies documents in 2025. Young people across the world informed these revisions through a global online consultation about their health-care experiences. We examine whether these young people reported receiving time alone with their clinician at their last health-care visit. METHODS:We conducted a secondary analysis of WHO consultation data from a nonrepresentative sample (N = 406) of young people (aged 10-24 years) from 64 countries spanning all 6 UN regions. Respondents completed an anonymous survey available in 6 languages between March 2024 and June 2024 about their health-care experiences. RESULTS:Overall, 79.2% of participants (N = 309/390, missing N = 16) reported having a visit with a health-care provider within the last 2 years, of whom 73.3% (N = 198/270, missing N = 39) reported time alone with their provider at their last visit. Rates did not differ by gender, rural versus urban settings, United Nations region, or country income group. Under 18 year olds were less likely than those 18 years or older to report time alone at their last visit (35.5% vs. 78.2%, x2 = 25.7, p < .001). Youth accompanied by a parent or caregiver were also less likely to report time alone compared to unaccompanied youth (52.0% vs. 88.0%, x2 = 39.3, p < .001), regardless of age. DISCUSSION:Younger age and parental attendance at health-care visits were associated with lower likelihood of having had time alone with providers. Greater attention is needed within health systems to ensure that health services meet WHO standards around guidelines for confidential care.

The Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine and the International Association for Adolescent Health recognize that climate change impacts multiple dimensions of health and well-being for adolescents and young adults. According to the World Health Organization, climate change is one of the top 10 health threats facing humanity. No aspect of adolescent health is spared from the consequences of climate change: food and housing insecurity, heat-related morbidity and mortality, water-borne diseases, infectious diseases, including sexually transmitted infections and HIV, mental health disorders, gender-based violence, conflict, internal displacement, and migration are all impacted. Vulnerable populations, such as adolescents and young adults, and those living in lower- to middle-income countries and environmental justice communities, are the ones whose health will be most affected. The Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine and the International Association for Adolescent Health call for urgent action in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the Convention on the Rights of the Child to avert the irreversible consequences of climate change. Health professionals and health-care organizations can and should help lead global climate action along with youth, supporting mitigation and adaptation strategies that protect young people. Adolescent health professionals and organizations must advocate for climate justice and equitable resources, urge health systems to mitigate their adverse impacts on the environment, advocate for health organizations to focus on green investments, be leaders in climate education of the next generation of adolescent health professionals, and focus research on equitable strategies to reduce climate harms. (c) 2024 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.

Background Children from racial and ethnic minority groups are at greater risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, but it is unclear whether they have increased risk for post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC). Our objectives were to assess whether the risk of respiratory and neurologic PASC differs by race/ethnicity and social drivers of health. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of individuals <21 years seeking care at 24 health systems across the U.S, using electronic health record (EHR) data. Our cohort included those with a positive SARS-CoV-2 molecular, serology or antigen test, or with a COVID-19, multisystem inflammatory disease in children, or PASC diagnosis from February 29, 2020 to August 1, 2022. We identified children/youth with at least 2 codes associated with respiratory and neurologic PASC. We measured associations between sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and respiratory and neurologic PASC using odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals estimated from multivariable logistic regression models adjusted for other sociodemographic characteristics, social vulnerability index or area deprivation index, time period of cohort entry, presence and complexity of chronic respiratory (respectively, neurologic) condition and healthcare utilization. Findings Among 771,725 children in the cohort, 203,365 (26.3%) had SARS-CoV-2 infection. Among children with documented infection, 3217 children had respiratory PASC and 2009 children/youth had neurologic PASC. In logistic regression models, children <5 years (Odds Ratio [OR] 1.78, 95% CI 1.62-1.97), and of Hispanic White descent (OR 1.19, 95% CI 1.05-1.35) had higher odds of having respiratory PASC. Children/youth living in regions with higher area deprivation indices (OR 1.25, 95% CI 1.10-1.420 for 60-79th percentile) and with chronic complex respiratory conditions (OR 3.28, 95% CI 2.91-3.70) also had higher odds of respiratory PASC. In contrast, older (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.40-1.77 for those aged 12-17 years), non-Hispanic White individuals and those with chronic pre-existing neurologic conditions (OR 2.04, 95% CI 1.78-2.35) were more likely to have a neurologic PASC diagnosis. Interpretation Racial and ethnic differences in healthcare utilization for neurologic and respiratory PASC may reflect social drivers of health and inequities in access to care. Funding National Institutes of Health. Copyright (c) 2024 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have rapidly emerged as a new frontier in the global nicotine epidemic, particularly targeting children, adolescents, and youth. Marketed as safer alternatives and cessation aids, e-cigarettes deliver highly addictive nicotine, often via protonated formulations that enhance absorption and dependency. This position paper by the International Pediatric Association (IPA) synthesizes global evidence on the use, risks, and regulatory gaps of e-cigarettes. It highlights increasing prevalence among youth, driven by misleading marketing, ease of access (especially via social media), appealing flavors, and stealth designs. E-cigarettes have not proven significantly effective through real-world studies for smoking cessation in youth or adults when used as consumer products. Instead, dual use (using e-cigarettes and cigarettes at the same time) and long-term nicotine dependence are common. E-cigarette use is associated with cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory, oral diseases and cancer, with dual users facing greater health risks than cigarette smokers alone. Drawing on global data and recommendations from apex public health organizations, IPA calls for comprehensive bans or stringent regulation on the manufacture, marketing, sale, and use of e-cigarettes. Pediatricians and medical associations play a vital role in advocating, educating, and providing clinical support to combat industry-driven misinformation and safeguard the youth. IPA urges its member societies to adopt unified, evidence-based policies to restrict access and exposure and to ensure governments are guided by robust scientific evidence-not industry interests. E-cigarettes threaten to reverse decades of progress in tobacco control-an urgent, coordinated action is required to safeguard the health of future generations.

OBJECTIVE : To use multiple perspectives to identify the key components of pediatric primary care conversations for motivating parents to utilize parenting programs. We aim to develop an actionable framework that primary care clinicians (PCCs) can follow for effective conversations with parents. METHODS : We conducted focus groups and interviews with researchers (n = 6) who have experience delivering parenting interventions through primary care, clinical personnel in federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) (n = 9), parents of 3-5year olds who receive services at a FQHC pediatric clinic (n = 6), and parent educators (n = 5). Groups and interviews were informed by nominal group technique, and researchers triangulated consolidated strategies across the groups. RESULTS : Key strategies for PCCs to motivate parents to utilize parenting programs followed three steps: 1) learning about a parent's questions and concerns, 2) sharing resources, and 3) following up. PCCs can learn about parents' needs by empathizing, listening and responding, and asking questions that acknowledge parents' expertise. When sharing resources, PCCs can motivate participation in parenting programs by explaining each resource and its benefits, providing options that support parents' autonomy, and framing resources as strengthening rather than correcting parents' existing strategies or skills. Finally, PCCs can continue to engage parents by scheduling follow-up conversations or designating a staff member to check -in with parents. We provide examples for each strategy. CONCLUSIONS : Findings provide guidance from multiple perspectives on strategies to motivate parents in pediatric primary care setting for utilizing parenting programs.

The global population of adolescents is increasing and with it, the need to ensure young people's health care needs are met [ [1] Patton G.C. Sawyer S.M. Santelli J.S. et al. Our future: A lancet commission on adolescent health and wellbeing. Lancet. 2016; 387: 2423-2478 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Google Scholar ]. Nations around the world made commitments to adolescent health and well-being at the finale of the Global Forum for Adolescents in October 2023 [ [2] Partnership for maternal newborn and child health and world health organisation. Global Forum for adolescents. https://www.1point8b.org/Date: 2023 Date accessed: October 12, 2023 Google Scholar ]. These commitments will set the path for change, but structures and systems need to be in place to ensure real and sustainable impact.

This special issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health provides a status report on the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent Health (GAMA). Established by the World Health Organization (WHO), GAMA is an ambitious effort to improve measurement of adolescent health and standardize inclusion of adolescents' needs in global goals for health and well-being. GAMA has been led by a WHO-based secretariat in collaboration with UNAIDS, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women, the World Bank Group, and the World Food Program. GAMA's goal is to improve adolescent health measurement globally [1The global action for measurement of adolescent health (GAMA): about us.https://www.who.int/groups/the-global-action-for-measurement-of-adolescent-health/about-usDate accessed: January 28, 2024Google Scholar]. A global multidisciplinary advisory group which included several young professionals and UN agency technical experts have helped guide the work to date. The papers in this issue review the methods used to select priority indicators for adolescent health measurement, examine GAMA's goals from several different perspectives, and describe the implementation feasibility discussions held with several countries about the selected set of indicators. The special issue reports both what should be measured, barriers and facilitators to country-led implementation efforts, and implications for integration of the measures into the Sustainable Developmental Goals and national commitments to improve adolescent health and well-being. The final set of indicators will be published in May 2024, along with guidance on how the indicators might best be used for accountability and improvement of service access and availability for adolescents. It has been a special privilege to serve as guest editor for these papers, and to read and review the truly enormous amount of work that has gone into developing, validating, and testing the measures and indicators being reported here. GAMA provides a reasonably concise set of metrics that would be able to track the impact of government investments in young people in their countries and in their communities. If implemented, they would substantially improve countries' ability to track adolescents' health. Additionally, if countries and other stakeholder agree on implementing and acting on these measures, they have the potential to reduce duplication of efforts by different stakeholders seeking to measure other specific health related priorities. But what is really needed to achieve adolescent health and well-being? Are the needs of adolescents met and do health systems change for the better with publication of new needs assessment or consensus documents about accountability and measurement? There are several critical barriers to implementation of the GAMA measures. These include adequate technical expertise at national and subnational levels to support survey sampling and analysis, significant political and societal resistance to identifying rates of socially taboo or sensitive activities among youth, and competing funding priorities. Once measurement efforts identify areas of need, there are several critical barriers to translation of results into effective action plans. New spending and enhanced and expanded health, education and other services for adolescents and young adults are usually needed. Commitments by governments to investments in health and public health systems through overseas development and other technical assistance mechanisms are also needed. Similarly, commitments by national and subnational governments in every country are essential to address sustainability and health systems improvements. Advocacy for the political will to make adolescent health a priority also needs financing for planned efforts toward change. Foundations and other donor support are needed to mobilize professional associations and other civil society stakeholders as advocates for the investments and changes needed to improve adolescent health. The publication of these papers focuses on one critical element in achieving progress for young people. GAMA's measures are one key tool for advocates. Others include the recent release of the second edition of WHO Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents (AH-HA!): Guidance to Support Country Implementation [2Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents (AA-HA!): Guidance to Support Country Implementation. 2nd ed. World Health Organization, Geneva2023https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240081765Date accessed: February 2, 2024Google Scholar], and recent reports of the Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing, proposing scalable multisectoral actions from an intergenerational perspective [3Lancet commission on adolescent health and wellbeing.https://adolescentsourfuture.com/2024-lancet-commission/Date accessed: February 3, 2024Google Scholar]. WHO will follow the second edition of AH-HA! With updated version of adolescent health standards [4Setting Standards for Adolescent Care.https://www.who.int/activities/setting-standards-for-adolescent-careDate accessed: February 3, 2024Google Scholar] and competencies for clinicians and health systems, due out later in 2024. The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn, & Child Health also continues to identify adolescent health and well-being as one of three major priorities, calling attention to the commitments made by government and other stakeholders at the 2023 Global Forum for Adolescents, and to the continued engagement of young people's voices and to the youth driven agenda for change [51.8 Billion young people for change campaign and the global forum for adolescents.https://pmnch.who.int/news-and-events/campaigns/1-8-billionDate accessed: January 30, 2024Google Scholar]. GAMA's explanatory study in 12 countries [6Kägesten A.E. Marsh A.D. Storey S. et al.Exploring a preliminary set of indicators to measure adolescent health: Results from a 12-country feasibility study.J Adolesc Health. 2024; 74: S67-S80Google Scholar] and the deeper dive into implementation in India, Togo, and Armenia found the GAMA measures "relevant and feasible" but noted that "perceived acceptability influenced their implementation in countries." [7Rizvi Z.A. Kumar D. Mehta R. et al.Improving adolescent mental health measurement in India.J Adolesc Health. 2024; 74: S24-S26Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar, 8Tchandana M. Bledje K. Kanekatoua-Agbolo S. et al.What does it take to make the needs of adolescents and young people visible through collecting health information in Togo?.J Adolesc Health. 2024; 74: S22-S23Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar, 9Melkumova M. Movsesyan Y. Sargsyan S. et al.Challenges and opportunities to advance adolescent health measurement in Armenia: Alignment between global priority indicators and national policies, and feasibility of collecting sexual, reproductive and mental health indicators.J Adolesc Health. 2024; 74: S80-S93Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar] This emphasizes the critical need for adolescent health clinicians and researcher to step forward and engage stakeholders in advocating for measurement of adolescent health and well-being in their countries, followed by helping lead the changes needed to improve adolescent health and well-being. Strategies to consider include writing to and meeting with health ministries and health department leaders, working to convene or engage and participate in the work of maternal and child health and adolescent health technical expert and advisory committees, and engaging health care professional societies and other civil society stakeholders in adolescent well-being. This is a critical time for adolescent health leaders to work together with young people to advocate for standards and guidelines for adolescent care, alignment of health surveillance with GAMA measures, and active multisector planning and accountability for adolescent health services improvement in both national and community-level agendas.

Purpose: Evidence and clinical policy support that providers screen and counsel for media use for youth, but most pediatricians lack this training. The purpose of this study was to test a primary care provider (PCP)-delivered intervention to promote safe social media use among youth.Methods: We enrolled pediatric PCP practices for this clinical trial to test a social media counseling intervention (SMCI) between 2011 and 2013. Youth were recruited during clinic visits; follow-up interviews were conducted at 6 months. Outcomes included media behaviors and caregiver communication. Multivariate regression models examined associations between social media counseling and PCP counseling score. Multivariate logistic regression evaluated four social media behavior outcomes.Results: A total of 120 practices enrolled; PCPs in the SMCI were more likely to provide social media counseling (B = 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-1.7). Youth whose PCP received the SMCI were twice as likely to report a decrease in online "friending" of strangers (adjusted odds ratio = 2.23, 95% CI 1.17-4.25) and were more likely to report communication with their caregivers about their social media use (adjusted odds ratio = 1.2; 95% CI: 1.1-1.4) compared to youth whose PCPs were in the active control group.Discussion: Youth whose PCP had received social media counseling training reported a higher receipt of counseling about social media and improved safety behaviors.(c) 2023 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. All rights reserved.

In October 2022, the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH), with WHO and other UN and academic partners, including youth-led and youth-serving organizations, launched the 1.8 Billion Young People for Change Campaign [ [1] Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health. 1.8 billion young people for change campaign and the Global Forum for Adolescents. Geneva; PMNCH. Available at: https://pmnch.who.int/news-and-events/campaigns/1-8-billion. Accessed March 21, 2023. Google Scholar ]. The campaign has been developed by young people for young people. It aims to mobilize and amplify existing advocacy by young people on what they want in support of their current and future well-being and to stimulate greatly increased commitments for adolescents and their well-being from governments and their partners. A high point of the campaign will be the Global Forum for Adolescents (GFA), the world's largest ever virtual gathering for adolescents and youth, which will be held on the 11th and 12th October 2023 [ [1] Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health. 1.8 billion young people for change campaign and the Global Forum for Adolescents. Geneva; PMNCH. Available at: https://pmnch.who.int/news-and-events/campaigns/1-8-billion. Accessed March 21, 2023. Google Scholar ]. In response to young people's concerns on the climate impact of travel and the desire to reach as large and diverse a group of stakeholders as possible, the forum will be taking place virtually.

Recognizing the multiple and intergenerational benefits of investing in adolescent well-being, a Call to Action for Adolescent Well-being was launched in 2020 and endorsed by an unprecedented coalition of governments, UN agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and academic institutions. Signatories to the Call committed to engage adolescents in all legal, policy, and program processes that affect them; develop multisectoral, whole-of-government policy approaches that address adolescent well-being; and strengthen political commitment and funding for adolescents. To further support these efforts, the 1.8 Billion Young People for Change Campaign was launched in 2022 [ [1] The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health1.8 billion young People for Change Campaign and the Global Forum for Adolescents. https://pmnch.who.int/news-and-events/campaigns/1-8-billionDate accessed: May 26, 2023 Google Scholar ].

In October 2022, the Partnership for Women's, Children's and Adolescent Health (PMNCH) launched a campaign for adolescent health and well-being.Along with the World Health Organization, other UN agencies, healthcare professional associations, other public and private sector civil society partners, and many youth-led and youth-serving organizations, the call to action included a blog (1point8b.org).Definition of health and well-being and launched planning towards a Global Forum for Adolescents (GFA).The conceptual framework for adolescent well-being has five domains:(1) Good health and optimum nutrition; (2) Connectedness, positive values, and contribution to society; (3) Safety and a supportive environment; (4) Learning, competence, education, skills and employability; and (5) Agency and resilience (Fig. 1). 1 These domains recognize the interconnectedness between individual health, community, and society in allowing every young person to thrive and achieve their potential as productive, engaged young adults.The Global Forum on October 11-12th, 2023, hopes to be the world's largest gathering of adolescents and youth.More than a million young people are expected to contribute their opinions and their voices to the 1point8 Billion campaign (www.1point8.org),to highlight what young people want. 2 The forum, and events held around the world, will be a platform for youth to call for action and investments by governments and others to promote well-being through policies, funding commitments, and political will.The Forum will be held virtually, to allow widespread participation across countries and time zones, and to recognize young people's commitment to reducing carbon footprints and the climate impact of international travel.To truly have a sustainable and meaningful impact on adolescent health and well-being, countries must invest in health services that meet the needs of young people.These cost-effective investments in preventive care include screening and counseling for injury prevention, obesity and malnutrition, tobacco and alcohol use, and of course chemoprophylaxis for vaccine-preventable diseases. 4Evidence-based screening, counseling, and treatments can and must address mental health, nutrition, and sexual and reproductive health in primary care settings.Families, communities, and educational settings are critical partners in health and wellbeing.Healthcare workers need skills and training, and access to referral resources, to include common and preventable health problems of youth in routine primary care and maternal, child, and adolescent services.This requires investments in health systems, building on and expanding efforts that delivered diseasespecific services toward more comprehensive care.It also requires education of front-line and referral workforces, so that clinicians are able to address prevention and access to care.These interventions should include screening and primary and secondary prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and the many risk factors for NCDs that start during childhood and adolescence.These must be aligned with vaccine and chemoprophylaxis recommendations

Tobacco and secondhand smoke remain leading threats to public health. Evidence since the 1950s has shown that the tobacco industry has acted in bad faith to deceive the public about the health effects of smoking. They have specifically targeted vulnerable populations including children and adolescents with various-and often misleading-marketing efforts and promotions. The increased popularity and weak regulation of electronic cigarettes have created a new generation of smokers who mistakenly believe they are "safer" from harm. Continued research, advocacy, and government action are needed to protect public health. Public health advocates must know the evidence, build coalitions, and prepare for industry countermeasures. Persistence is key, but public health efforts have successfully decreased tobacco-related deaths.

Introduction: Primary care providers are well-positioned to facilitate itated parent-adolescent health communication prevalence and associations with parent-adolescent health communication.Method: Using data from a national survey of parent-adolescent dyads (n = 853), we calculated the prevalence of provider-facilitated parent-adolescent health communication about 11 topics as a result of adolescent's last preventive visit. We examined correlates of of provider-facilitatedparent-adolescent communication and associations with with parent-adolescent communication. Results: Eighteen percent of adolescents reported that a provider helped them talk with their parent about a health concern, with lit-tle variability by adolescent, parent, or provider characteristics. Prevalence of parent-adolescent communication because of an adolescent's last preventive visit ranged between 38.4% and 79.5%. Provider facilitation was positively associated with parent -adoles-cent communication for all topics.Discussion: Given the low prevalence of provider-facilitated-par-ent-adolescent health communication and positive associations between provider facilitation and parent-adolescent

Several recent initiatives have brought global attention to the world's adolescents. The Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing [[1]Patton G.C. Sawyer S.M. Santelli J.S. et al.Our future: A Lancet commission on adolescent health and wellbeing.Lancet. 2016; 387: 2423-2478Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1751) Google Scholar], the World Health Organization Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents [[2]World Health OrganisationGlobal accelerated Action for the health of adolescents (AA-HA!) Guidance to support Country implementation. World Health Organisation, Geneva, Switzerland2017Google Scholar], and the 2022 BMJ collection on Adolescent Wellbeing [[3]Mohan A. Kostelecky S.M. Sivakumar A. et al.Improving adolescent wellbeing is an urgent global priority.BMJ. 2022; 379: o2551Crossref PubMed Scopus (1) Google Scholar] have all recognized that addressing adolescent health and wellbeing affects health now, into adulthood, and for the next generation of children—the so-called 'triple dividend' [[1]Patton G.C. Sawyer S.M. Santelli J.S. et al.Our future: A Lancet commission on adolescent health and wellbeing.Lancet. 2016; 387: 2423-2478Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1751) Google Scholar]. These efforts have led to a call to action and to the 1.8 Billion Young People for Change Campaign and the Global Forum for Adolescents [[4]Partnership for Maternal NaCHP. The global forum for adolescents and the 1.8 Billion campaign, 2023.https://www.1point8b.org/Date accessed: February 2, 2023Google Scholar]. The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, the world's largest alliance for women's, children's, and adolescents' health, and many other organizations and stakeholders launched these events to mobilize political and financial commitments toward improved adolescent health and wellbeing and to accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To achieve such ambitious objectives will require collaboration among many stakeholders, including young professionals working with adolescents and youth. We write this letter to advocate for young professionals as a critical link between adolescents and more experienced professionals in adolescent health. The International Association for Adolescent Health Young Professionals Network is a multidisciplinary community of students, trainees, and early career professionals, including healthcare providers, researchers, public health practitioners, advocates, communication experts, and scientists dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of adolescents locally, nationally, and globally [[5]International Association of Adolescent Health (IAAH). Young professionals network, 2023.https://iaah.org/young-professionals-network/Date accessed: March 28, 2023Google Scholar]. Established in 2018, the Young Professional Network supports networking, mentorship, and leadership development and provides a forum to share education and training opportunities in adolescent health. In the last five years, the network has grown to include 468 members from 78 countries. Our 18 young professional committee members represent 12 countries from the American, Asian Pacific, European, and African regions. Our network has coordinated a global mentoring program for adolescent health clinicians and researchers and convened global webinars on topics affecting adolescent wellbeing such as COVID-19 and mental health and on topics relevant to young professionals, such as leadership and career development. As a broad, multidisciplinary group, we are well positioned to support the 1.8 Billion Young People for Change Campaign and the Global Forum for Adolescents. Our generation of young professionals is critical to greater collaboration among stakeholders to accelerate and institutionalize progress toward the ambitious objectives and targets of the SDGs. As champions for and with adolescents, these initiatives are an ideal time for young professional advocates to join with older leaders in adolescent health. Emerging evidence suggests the important role that young professionals play across scientific societies [[6]Bankston A. Davis S.M. Moore E. et al.Why scientific societies should involve more early-career researchers.Elife. 2020; 9e60829Crossref Google Scholar], healthcare [[7]Drejza M. Al-wahdani B. Turk T. Meaningful youth engagement in global health means equal partnership and power sharing: The BMJ Opinion; 2019.https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2019/02/14/meaningful-youth-engagement-in-global-health-means-equal-partnership-and-power-sharing/Date accessed: February 28, 2023Google Scholar], public health [[8]Wong B.L.H. Siepmann I. Chen T.T. et al.Rebuilding to shape a better future: The role of young professionals in the public health workforce.Hum Resour Health. 2021; 19: 82Crossref PubMed Scopus (12) Google Scholar], and education [[9]Kokotailo P.K. Baltag V. Sawyer S.M. Educating and training the future adolescent health workforce.J Adolesc Health. 2018; 62: 511-524Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (24) Google Scholar]. For example, the International Confederation of Midwives hosts a successful Young Midwife Leaders project to 'build a global community among young midwives to foster support and learning and create opportunities for research, innovation, and advocacy.' Similarly, the World Heart Federation Salim Yusuf Emerging Leaders Program builds capacity among young professionals to reduce premature mortality from cardiovascular disease globally. Many young professionals are, or soon will be, frontline healthcare workers, early career researchers, adolescent health educators, and global health advocates, playing a critical role across various settings and contributing toward improving adolescent health and wellbeing. However, young professionals face many challenges engaging at a national and international level, including lack of opportunities and mentorship, structural barriers for marginalized groups, and tokenism. Such barriers may contribute to an imbalance in representation in future leadership roles in global adolescent health. Greater collaboration can be achieved with adolescents themselves as stakeholders, as evident by the 1.8 'What Young People Want' campaign bringing youth voice to local, national, or international issues to the Global Forum. Lessons from this positive and meaningful engagement can and should also be applied to young professionals. Young professionals are often young people themselves and are a necessary connection between adolescent populations and more experienced professionals and leaders in adolescent health, fostering a continuum of interaction within health systems, global dialogue, and policy making. In the absence of formal training in adolescent health in many regions of the world [[10]Nagata J.M. Gonzales S.R. Yap N. Sawyer S.M. Catalyzing connections for the future of adolescent health: An international young professionals network.J Adolesc Health. 2020; 66: 629-630Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1) Google Scholar], international societies, such as the International Association of Adolescent Health, play a pivotal role in providing multidisciplinary learning opportunities and fostering networking, mentorship, and leadership development for young professionals working in and interested in adolescent health. There is an urgent need to mobilize political and financial commitments toward improving the health and wellbeing of adolescents across the world. Global initiatives have raised awareness, but these efforts must be enhanced. The International Association for Adolescent Health Young Professionals Network calls for national and international leaders to support the Global Forum for Adolescents and to make meaningful and accountable commitments to improving adolescent health and wellbeing. In addition, we urge national and international leaders to engage with and invest in young professionals as a critical stakeholder group in adolescent health. Support for the future workforce and for the networking, mentorship, and leadership development by the International Association for Adolescent Health Young Professionals Network and others is a critical element affecting the long-term success of these global initiatives. National and global leaders can emphasize the important role that young professionals play across disciplines and generations, as well as addressing structural barriers that young professionals face when engaging at national and international levels, particularly for those from marginalized groups. We encourage leaders to call on young professionals to support global initiatives. Importantly, we ask leaders to provide young professionals with opportunities to meaningfully engage with them to learn the skills and strategies that are necessary to successfully advocate for adolescent health. Such support can provide opportunities for collaboration and promote diversity and inclusivity in the representation of young professionals. In turn, this engagement empowers young professionals from multidisciplinary backgrounds to become the leaders of tomorrow in improving adolescent health and wellbeing globally and can and will accelerate progress toward the Global Forum and toward the SDGs. We wish to thank the immediate past president of the International Association for Adolescent Health, Professor Susan M. Sawyer and the inaugural co-chairs, Dr. Jason M. Nagata, Dr. Sophie Remoue Gonzales, and Dr. Natalie Yap for their efforts in establishing the IAAH Young Professionals Network. We also thank all the past and present officers for their contributions to the network. The International Association for Adolescent Health and the IAAH-YPN are partially supported by a Step Up! Grant from the AstraZeneca Young Health Program.