DE PERE, WI (WTAQ) – Bellin Health is introducing a first of its kind clinic in Northeast Wisconsin, focusing on the healthcare needs of teens and adolescents.
Many adolescents feel too old to be in the same pediatric waiting room as babies – but much too young for other waiting rooms. Dr. Sherri Hoyman says the new Bellin Health Adolescent Team can bridge that gap.
“We want them to feel comfortable, that they can learn how to care for themselves as they reach adulthood and can be the healthiest that they can be,” Hoyman told WTAQ News. “Sometimes adolescents don’t feel comfortable enough in those spaces. This is a clinic that isn’t going to be too big or too small, it’s going to be just the right fit for them.”
Teens have a lot of growth happening, very quickly – whether that’s physically, mentally, or emotionally. The team includes healthcare providers who are comfortable in caring for adolescents and all of the related issues that they deal with.
“It is a spot that really is going to be adolescent friendly from the time you walk in, until the time you leave. Adolescence is a time of risk, but it’s also a really big opportunity for us. Adolescents go through a lot of physical and emotional and social changes,” Hoyman said. “They’re maturing, they’re developing sexually, they have powerful emotions – anybody that’s a parent of a teenager can definitely relate to that – and they have a really rapid changes in the way that they think…To have a site that is catering to those areas is really, really helpful.”
But it will also address the growing social issues a teen might face.
“There’s the belonging, the need to feel like you’re part of something and that you’re really accepted, and to feel powerful to be able to make your own decisions,” Hoyman said. “They start to feel independent. Adolescents really want to start to get more control over their own life…If we can really dedicate time and space to help them through all of that, it’ll be a positive outcome.”
The clinic will cover several areas that adolescents often need help in, including nutrition and mental health services. There will be a behavioral health consultant and nutritionist on-site.
Initially staffed two half-days per week within the existing Bellin Health De Pere East clinic, Hoyman expects the Adolescent Team will be poised for growth in future years. Bellin Health also recently earned the Adolescent Centered Environment Gold Certification at its East De Pere, Marinette and Iron
Mountain clinics.
Patients may be referred to the Bellin Health Adolescent Team through their existing Bellin Health provider or via their MyBellinHealth account, or by contacting the clinic directly at (920) 338-6830.
