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Purpose: Primary care providers’ (PCPs') provision of time alone with an adolescent without the parents present (henceforth referred to as “confidential care”) has a significant impact on adolescents’ disclosure of risk behavior. To inform the development of interventions to improve PCPs’ delivery of confidential care, we obtained the perspectives of adolescent males and their mothers about the health care concerns of adolescent males and the provision of confidential care.

Methods: This focus-group study (5 groups: 2 with adolescent males and 2 with mothers) used standard qualitative methods for analysis. We recruited mother/son dyads who had been seen at urban primary care practices.

Results: Adolescents’ health concerns focused on pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections; mothers took a broader view. Many adolescents felt that PCPs often delivered safe sex counseling in a superficial, impersonal …