Encourage healthy decisions about what they eat and drink, how active they are, and how much sleep they get.
You’ve guided your teen from a baby, and it can be difficult to let them make their own decisions about their health. Start with small steps to empower your teen to be proactive about their health decisions.
On this page:
Preparing your teen
Give your teen their basic medical information. Knowing this will help in an emergency.
- The name, address, and phone number of their doctor(s).
- The details on medicines they take.
- Their personal medical history such as vaccinations, any major medical problems, and the details of any operations or hospital treatments.
- Your family medical history. Let your teen know if any cancer or diabetes run in the family.
- Any allergies they may have.
Let them start making their own decisions. The more they learn about health care, the smarter their decisions will be — and the more comfortable you will feel with having your teen make them.
- Choosing their own doctor is one of the most important decisions they can make. Lots of people prefer to stay with their childhood doctor during the teen years
- Their doctor should be someone they feel comfortable talking to about anything—body image, dating, relationships, peer pressure to drink or do drugs, school problems, or depression
- Let them take all the time they need to find the right doctor. If they have to switch a couple of times, that’s OK
- Have them include you as you make their decisions
Here are some things your teen can start doing around age 14:
- Let them make their own medical appointments. Allergies acting up? Time for their sports physical? Encourage your teen to call and make their own appointment. If it helps, sit with them as they make their first call, or give them a checklist of things to ask.
- Call in any prescription refills and pick them up at the pharmacy.
- Keep their own personal health records.
- Schedule alone time at each doctor’s visit. This lets them build their own working relationship with their doctor.
Here’s what to do by the time your teen leave high school:
- Have copies of their medical records — or know where to get them
- Know if your parent(s) have personal health insurance for everyday health care expenses that are not covered under OHIP
- Know how to get referrals to specialists, if needed
To get help navigating Ontario’s health care system and connecting with the programs or services your teen may be looking for, visit Health Care Ontario
Resources
Telehealth Ontario is a free, confidential service you can call to get health advice or information from a registered nurse. If you are in a real emergency call 911.
Ministry of Health – Ontario Government
Hamilton Health Sciences
Indigenous Youth Resources
- Native Youth Sexual Health Network works with Indigenous peoples across the United States and Canada to advocate for and build strong, comprehensive, and culturally safe sexuality and reproductive health, rights, and justice initiatives in their own communities.
