Baby and Child Health
At The Madison Medical Practice St Ives, our Registered Nurses, Immunisation Nurses, and General Practitioners specialising in child and family health combine to promote the physical, emotional, social wellbeing, and development of your baby or child.
Our services include baby health checks, blue book checks, and scheduled immunisations. (“Blue Book” Schedule: 1-4 weeks, 6 weeks, 4 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years).
1-4 Week Health Check
At this visit, your doctor and/or registered nurse will attend to a full physical baby health check. This includes weight, length and head circumference which will be recorded in the blue book. It is a good time to discuss any feeding, growth and development concerns of your newborn at this stage. You can also discuss how you are feeling as new parents so your GP and nurse can address any concerns.
6 Week Health Check and Immunisation
It is important for the mother to book in with their GP or obstetrician for a post-partum check.
At this visit, your doctor and/or registered nurse will attend to a full physical baby health check. This check includes the head fontanelles, eye red reflex, mouth, skin, lungs, umbilical area, genital, hips and heart. Additional checks include weight, length and head circumference and developmental milestones. This is recorded in the blue book and the measurements are recorded on growth charts. Your experienced nurse immuniser will then attend to your baby’s vaccinations according to the immunisation schedule. You will be advised of any side effects of these vaccines and educated on post-vaccination care and management.
4 Month Health Check and Immunisation
At this check, a routine baby health check is conducted which includes checking weight, length, head circumference and developmental milestones and which are recorded in the blue book and the measurements are plotted on growth charts. The experienced nurse immuniser will attend to your baby’s vaccinations according to the immunisation schedule. You will be given written information regarding the introduction of solids to prepare you for the commencement of solid food at the 6 months period.
6 Month Health Check and Immunisation
This check includes a thorough assessment of your baby’s development. This includes assessment of behaviour, movement, seeing, hearing, and communication skills. At this stage your child will begin to teeth (known as teething). The staff will discuss strategies with you to relieve teething issues. You will be educated and given written information regarding the introduction of solids so that your baby can experience new tastes and textures from a range of foods to develop teeth, jaw and language development. The weight, length and head circumference and developmental milestones will be recorded in the blue book and the measurements will be plotted on growth charts. The 6 Month vaccinations will be attended as scheduled.
12 Month Health Check and Immunisation
At this stage your child is now communicating in many ways; waving, pointing and trying to talk. Your baby might even stand or be walking. We will assess your child’s development including weight, length and head circumference, and milestones will be recorded in the blue book. The vaccinations will be attended as per schedule and any side effects will be discussed thoroughly by the registered nurse and GP.
18 – 24 Month Health Check and Immunisation
Your child now is becoming independent; helping when getting dressed, showing new emotions like anger and showing signs of toilet training. Your child may be a fussy eater and we can suggest some techniques to assist you with this. We will assess your child’s development and the weight, length and head circumference and milestones will be recorded in the blue book. The vaccinations will be attended as per the Australian Immunisation Schedule.
3 Year Health Check
During this visit, your doctor and/or nurse will check your child’s weight and height, calculate body mass index (BMI), and plot the measurements on growth charts. Growth is slow and steady during the preschool years. Your child will be eating three meals and two nutritious snacks a day. Even if your child is a picky eater, keep offering a variety of healthy foods. Preschoolers generally sleep about 11–12 hours a day. Most children this age still take a nap during the day. During this health check you can discuss any concerns with your nurse or GP.
4 Year Health Check and Immunisation
The Australian Government wants all children to start school healthy and ready to learn. From July 2011, parents or carers on income support who receive Family Tax Benefit Part A need to make sure their four-year-old child gets a health check before they start school. Book in with the child and family health nurse to conduct a comprehensive 4-year health assessment. This also includes a vision check; the same that is conducted at preschool with the STEPS program. During this visit, your doctor and/or nurse will check your child’s weight and height, calculate body mass index (BMI), and plot the measurements on growth charts. The vaccinations will be attended as per the Australian Immunisation Schedule and side effects discussed.
We can also discuss additional vaccinations available to help protect your child that are not part of the National Immunisation Program e.g. travel vaccinations, flu vaccinations & Meningococcal B.
Our Doctors and Immunisation Nurses administer immunisations with two qualified staff present to ensure the utmost safety of your child at all times.
Please look at the link below for the NSW Immunisation Schedule for Childhood Vaccinations: http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/immunisation/Publications/nsw-immunisation-schedule.pdf
Make an appointment with our friendly registered nurses or GPs if you have any concerns or questions regarding the health or development of your baby at any stage of development.