Many people wait and wait until their child is very sick before heading to the pediatrician’s office. But, as Benjamin Franklin said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Well-child checks are a means of preventative medicine that allow you and your child to track health over a period of time to catch problems before they arise, and care for the whole child.
Tracking child growth and development over a longer period of time allows your child’s pediatrician to understand what challenges may arise as well as understand when your child’s health is doing well or not so well. At well-child checks, your child’s pediatrician will be keeping records that will help you and your child’s pediatrician to better understand what resources your child will need to maintain and/or achieve their optimum level of health, as well as prevent serious problems before they arise.
Caring for the big picture of your child’s health is also a part of a well-child check. If you simply wait until your child is sick to be seen, then your child’s pediatrician will solely be focused on treatingthe problem at hand.
However, at a well-child check, your child’s pediatrician will use the following elements to evaluate the physical, mental, and emotional health of your child: developmental observations, physical exams, age-appropriate screenings, immunizations, and guidance on how to achieve and maintain health in the future. These tools help you and your child’s pediatrician know what your child’s strengths and weaknesses are health-wise, and can prevent a lot of serious health problems, or even better prepare when a health problem does arise.
Well-child checks are an invaluable tool for you (the parents) and pediatricians that can keep your child healthy in the long term. By measuring development and health long term and caring for the whole child, you can keep your child healthy, and reduce the chances of major medical problems down the road. Contact us today to schedule a well-child check for your child.
Articles with this disclaimer may not represent the beliefs or core values of Pediatric Care™. The following is simply a third-party summary taken from the industry’s general community to help readers stay up-to-date on what people are talking about.