The Adolescent Leadership Council

TALC

Text Box: The Adolescent Leadership Council Text Box: TALC Text Box: The TALC Parent Council In addition to the TALC teen/Brown mentor meetings, parents of teens are invited to participate in the TALC Parent Council. The council meets monthly at the same time as TALC and discusses similar topics from the parent perspective. Below are some tips compiled by the this year’s council. More will be added as future topics are discussed.

TALC Parent Tips for Parents

 

1.) Ask questions!

 

2.) Take notes.  It may be helpful to bring a notebook to appointments.

 

3.) Keep a list of questions to bring with you to appointments.

 

4.) Request a list of references such as reputable websites to refer to.

 

5.) Keep a binder with questions, calendars, contact information, medications, and side effects.

 

6.) Prepare a medical case plan and/or IEP with your adolescent’s school.

 

7.) Communicate with schools before problems happen.

 

8.) Educate other members of the family (siblings, grandparents, etc.) about your adolescent’s illness.

 

9.)  Find other parents to talk to.

 

10.) Help your child learn to talk to peers about his or her illness.

 

11.) Encourage your teen to be an advocate for him/herself.
Text Box: TALC Parent Tips for Physicians 1.) Be patient with your patients and their parents. 2.) Be compassionate, especially when delivering a diagnosis. 3.) Involve the patient (not tjust the parents) in the discussions. 4.) Prepare patients and their families with what to expect. 5.) Become familiar with your patient and their diagnoses. 6.) Provide your patients and families with a list of references (such as reputable websites) or FAQ’s that the can refer to. 7.)Don’t show queasiness (even if you are!) 8.) Be consistent with other members of the health care team. 9.) Judge your patient not by his or her diagnosis. 10.) Communicate!!!! (With nurses, parents, patients, students, etc.) 11.) Be careful where you talk about patients! Nurse’s stations are not out of the reach of families’ ears.