Do Adolescents Make Autonomous Medical Choices?

Do adolescents have the right to make autonomous medical choices? This question is asked very frequently all around, and is given various answers. This topic places medical decisions at the forefront, meaning that the topic touches on questions of terminal illnesses, pregnancy, sexual transmitted diseases, palliative care, and all the other types of decisions that minors have to make. Merriam-Webster defines “adolescent” as “A young person who is developing into an adult; a young person who is going through adolescence, and Merriam-Webster defines “adolescence” as “1. The state or process of growing up; 2. The period of life from puberty to maturity terminating legally at the age of majority; 3. A stage of development (as of a language or
Most scientific studies that have been conducted in relation to adolescents generally indicate that by age 14, adolescents have reached the point where they are capable of making decisions that are at least on par with the decision making capacity of young adults. Most medical professionals, especially those who work extensively with adolescents, recognize some tension in the belief that adolescents need to be treated as children. In the status quo, the age of 18 is treated as a magical number, at which point adolescents have reached the point where they are capable of making choices for themselves. Still, the treatment of adolescents across different segments of our society creates some problems with even this magical number. For instance, the fact that adolescents can, and often are, tried as adults for criminal acts they comment indicate that at least in some circumstances, society is willing to set aside the magical number 18, and recognize the ability of adolescents to make competent decisions, at least in as far as they are competent enough to be punished for their