Priority Areas for Adolescent Health Measurement

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Global Health
• Adolescent Health Research

Background:

• Adolescent health measurement is vast and complex.
• Current measurement initiatives may not align with critical needs or priorities.
• A focused approach is needed to optimize resources for adolescent health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish priority areas for adolescent health measurement.
• To identify current gaps in adolescent health data.
• To guide resource allocation for improved adolescent health outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Integrated four key inputs: youth perspectives, country priorities, disease burden, and existing measurement efforts.
• Grouped and summarized 99 identified measurement areas into six domains.
• Utilized a Delphi-like approach for international experts to select priority areas.

Main Results:

• Identified 99 relevant adolescent health measurement areas across six domains.
• Highlighted discrepancies between current measurement foci and youth/country priorities or disease burden.
• Selected 33 core, 19 expanded, and 6 context-specific priority areas for adolescent health measurement.

Conclusions:

• The current adolescent health measurement landscape is broad and often misaligned with key stakeholder perspectives and health burdens.
• Proposed priority areas aim to direct national and global efforts in adolescent health measurement.
• This work provides a framework for more effective and relevant adolescent health data collection.