Teenagers with chronic disorders, such as heart disease, who drop out oftreatment between child and adult care risk serious long-termconsequences.
Those with diabetes, for example, can go blind.
Yet services often fail to accommodate the developmental needs of youngpeople, who can be entering a period of rebellion where they don't wantto take medicines.
Dr Sheila Shribman, national clinical director for children's services,told Children Now the Government decided to take action followingconcern that children were falling through the net.
"We have evidence that suggests children can get lost to the system inthe transition between child and adult services," she said. "We need todo more work to raise the profile of that locally and will be bringingtogether adult and children's specialists to look at ways that we canimprove transition."
The initiative, which also aims to improve transition care for disabledyoung people, will be launched at a major conference in March.
The initiative will see adult doctors or paediatrician "champions"promoting a better understanding of young people's needs among theirpeers and senior management, and in national and local medicaltraining.
Professor David Hall, who is leading the programme, said he also plannedto involve young people and their parents in giving feedback tospecialists. He said although the "handover process" worked well in someareas, in others it could be a "traumatic business".
For instance, a child could leave treatment through being overwhelmedwhen faced with an unfamiliar doctor after getting to know theirpaediatrician well.
Champions would encourage hospitals to introduce joint clinics so thatadult and paediatric doctors see a young patient together.
Hall added it was crucial children were not discharged until all staffwere confident they were ready to make the transition. He said there wasno standard age limit for transferring children, and they could make thetransition at just 15.
The move forms the third strand of the Government's drive to improveadolescent care. It joins the You're Welcome quality criteria for makinghealth services more youth-friendly, sent to health and local authoritycommissioners last October.
And in the youth green paper, the Government pledged to set up healthdemonstration sites to explore more effective ways for young people toaccess services.
- See Interview, p13.
