The lack of youth health policies contrasts strikingly with initiatives around earlier childhood
It’s a decade since a comprehensive health policy framework for Australian children and young people aged 0–24 years was first released.1 The health of young Australians was an ambitious document that sought to place child and adolescent health within a broader context of social development. It proposed a greater integration and coordination of health with other services for the young and their families. Its intent was to promote prevention and positive development rather than treatment alone. The subsequent National Agenda for Early Childhood for children aged 0–5 years embodies many of these principles.2 Similarly, the closely aligned National Public Health Action Plan for Children aged 0–12 years draws on the earlier document.3
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- 1 Centre for Adolescent Health, Parkville, VIC.
- 2 Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, VIC.
- 3 Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD.
- 4 Department of Paediatrics, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA.
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