Assessing the potential of the Well Centre ‘Teen Health Check’ data

The team will undertake a preliminary, exploratory analysis of the Well Centre data to assess the feasibility of validating the Teen Health Check and to assess the potential for a larger scale project to describe the throughput at the Centre and compare this to young people in other primary care settings. They will also undertake a brief scoping review of existing research on young people and primary care, highlighting the outstanding research questions, particularly in relation to high risk sample such as those living in inner city areas where health needs may be higher.

The Well Centre is an innovative, award winning adolescent health one-stop-shop, jointly designed and developed by Redthread (a youth work charity) and the Herne Hill Group Practice (GPs). It provides drop in access to a GP, nurse or youth worker. It combines the health expertise of the GPs with the informal environment of a youth centre and delivers an integrated and effective approach to meeting the needs of young people.

In the three years since it has been open, the Well Centre has seen over 800 young people. A significant proportion have been subject to a new experimental ‘Teen Health Check’ as part of their assessment. Undertaken by a GP, this is a structured assessment of current medical problems, lifestyle, risk factors and safety. In addition, demographic and consultation data are entered into the widely used EMIS general practice database.