[The adolescent with cleft lip and palate]

Research studies afford an in-depth look at the problems experienced by adolescents born with a cleft lip, a cleft palate or cleft lip and palate. If not addressed, their problems can multiply with each successive stage of development. An interdisciplinary team, where the adolescents themselves play an important role, is one of the best means of helping them come to terms with the consequences of the abnormality. The nurse should be a key member of the team. To help adolescents cope with their situation now and in the future, the author promotes a holistic and humanistic approach. Here, she sees nurses creating therapeutic alliances as educators. She recommends that nurses assert themselves more as professionals and as essential resources. Her doctoral thesis proposes a training model to this effect.