Tagged: teenager

A new state law takes effect tomorrow that bans teenage drivers from talking on a cell phone behind the wheel.

“Kelsey’s law” is named for an Upper Peninsula teen who died in a car accident while using her mobile phone in 2010.

Kelsey’s mother, Bonnie Raffaele, lobbied hard for the law.

“Kelsey’s law will undoubtedly save lives,” says Bonnie Raffaele, “We may not know the exact number that it will save, but we know that it will save lives.”

Michigan is rolling out new guidelines designed to help health providers better identify teens with high-risk behaviors.

The statewide guidelines recommend that adolescents be assessed for health-risk behaviors, such as violence, at least once a year. They also recommend that health care providers use one of four screening tools to ensure adolescents are consistently screened statewide.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says high-risk behaviors are the primary cause of the death or serious injury of about three-quarters of teens.

The following is a summary of a previously recorded interview. To hear the complete segment, click the audio above.

Though largely unrecognized and difficult to pin a number to, human trafficking occurs in Michigan. Theresa Flores says the practice increases during events like the North American International Auto Show.

Flores heads Save Our Adolescents from Prostitution (S.O.A.P), a group actively working to rescue young girls and boys from trafficking.

S.O.A.P. is making a visit to the Auto Show in an attempt to reduce the prostitution that can plague large events like this.

A website is launching just in time to help parents monitor and improve winter driving skills for teen drivers.

The University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute created the site called - "safer driving for teens dot org".

“This promotes parents and teens communication with each other and clarity and what it is that’s expected. And some consequences…what will happen if the restrictions are not met,” says Jean Shope.  She’s with the Institute.

Michigan lawmakers have passed a bill that will ban cell phone use by new drivers. 

The bill was named after 17-year-old Kelsey Raffaele, who was killed in a car crash three years ago. She was talking on her phone while driving and lost control of her car.

A year and a half ago, Kelsey's mother, Bonnie Raffaele, started a campaign to ban cell phone use for drivers with probationary licenses.

"If we can teach them at a young age to not do it, and it's the social norm not to do it when you're driving, they'll carry that on to adulthood," Raffaele says.

Depression in teens is a serious illness with a difficult diagnosis.

To better understand how to effectively communicate with one’s child we spoke with two men from the University of Michigan Depression Center.

Dr. Richard Dopp is a psychiatrist who specializes in teenage depression. And Eric Hipple, a former quarterback for the Detroit Lions, is the Center’s Outreach Coordinator.

“There is a lot of news that goes out when there is the loss of a teen. What we see over time is certain populations will have an increase in suicide, but what you are actually seeing is more people are talking about it,” said Dopp.