Nondiscrimination Policy Update

Boston Medical Center Health System complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, national origin (including limited English proficiency and primary language), religion, culture, physical or mental disabilities, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation and gender identity and/or expression. BMCHS provides free aids and services to people with disabilities and free language services to people whose primary language is not English.

To read our full Nondiscrimination Statement, click here.

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Adolescent Medicine

Patient Resources

The Division of Adolescent Medicine is located within the Department of Pediatrics, on the 7th floor of the Crosstown Center.

If you need assistance after hours, on the weekend, or on a holiday, call the Pediatrics Department at 617.414.5946 and a doctor or nurse practitioner will return your call within 30 minutes. If you are ill, please take your temperature before calling so you can tell the on-call provider whether you have a fever.

In a life-threatening situation, call 911 or go to the Pediatric Emergency Medicine at 725 Albany Street (same location as the main ER).

Confidentiality Policy

To protect our patients’ health and to comply with Massachusetts state law, we provide adolescents with confidential care for problems related to sexually transmitted diseases and contraception. If you are a parent or a patient and you have a question about our confidentiality policy, please speak with your adolescent’s primary care clinician.

Programs and Services

In addition to offering routine healthcare and physical examinations and robust connections with social services and area support programs, BMC Adolescent Medicine offers or can connect patients to multiple special programs built specifically around issues faced by youth, such as addiction and substance use disorder (SUD), contraception and family planning, gender-affirming care, menstrual disorders, nutrition counseling, sexual assault and intimate violence, and teen and young adult prenatal care and parenting education.

Aftercare Clinic

BMC’s Adolescent Aftercare Clinic offers confidential short-term medical and behavioral health care for patients ages 13 to 22 who have experienced sexual trauma. Patients are wel…

CATALYST Clinic

An initiative offering counseling, support, and medical care for teenagers and young adults with substance use concerns.

Childbirth Education

Childbirth classes help you know what to expect during the labor and the birth process. They are a safe place to ask questions or talk about your birth-related concerns.

Family Planning Clinic

The Adolescent Family Planning Clinic at Boston Medical Center provides confidential, compassionate, and nonjudgmental reproductive health care for teens and young adults up to ag…

Menstrual Disorders Clinic

Boston Medical Center’s Menstrual Disorders Clinic (MDC) is located in the Adolescent Center, within the Department of Pediatrics. Our clinicians provide expert diagnosis and trea…

Pediatrics - Psychiatry

At Boston Medical Center, comprehensive mental health assessment and treatment are provided to children and adolescents in an outpatient setting. The program specializes in the as…

Teen and Tot Program

The Teen and Tot Program (TTP) is a specialized program focused on adolescent pregnancy and parenting, located within Boston Medical Center’s Adolescent Center.

Transitioning from Pediatric to Adult Care

Adolescent Medicine will provide complete physical exams for any patient established in our practice up to and including 22 years of age.

Patients 23 years of age and older will be encouraged to transition to a provider who practices adult medicine. However, our practice can continue to address urgent needs until the patient’s 24th birthday. After the 24th birthday, appointments may be made on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by the patient’s PCP.

Please note:

  • A patient is considered successfully transitioned to an adult medicine provider after they have had a visit/appointment with that provider. Until they have had a visit, they are still considered an Adolescent Division patient.
  • A patient is considered “new” if they have not been seen in the Pediatric/Adolescent Practice for three years or more. Any new patient 21 years of age or older should be scheduled with an adult medicine provider, unless they need a consult or access to adolescent subspecialty services, in which case patients can be scheduled up to age 25.

Resources for the Transition to Adult Care

BMC Resources
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Resources
Other Trusted Resources
  • A Bridge to Adult Health Coverage and Financial Benefits
    MA Department of Public Health handout (March 2015) with details about updating Social Security insurance as a child with special needs turns 18. Also available in Spanish.
  • DisabilityInfo.org
    Comprehensive UMass Chan Medical School/Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center resource to help people with disabilities find information about healthcare and other services.
  • Got Transition?
    Helpful website that can help answer questions youth and families might have about the transition process.
  • Healthy Transitions
    Resource from the New York State Institute for Health Transition Training for Youth with Developmental Disabilities that features a transition skills checklist as well as guides and videos for topics like scheduling an appointment, getting health insurance, guardianship, managing medication, and more.
  • Massachusetts Guardianship Association
    Information and resources about guardianship and conservatorship in Massachusetts.
  • Planning for Life after Special Education (PDF)
    Disability Law Center, Inc., manual for students, parents, and guardians about transition services.

General Resources for Newly Independent Youth/Young Adults

Our Teen and Tot Program staff has compiled a list of resources for independent youth and young adults and those responsible for other family members: