5 things your pediatrician want you to know about well-child visits

1. We want to partner with you as a parent, but we can’t do that if you don’t come to see us!
We know how hard parenting can be. Your child transitions from one phase to another in the blink of an eye. We see a lot of kids and we know what those phases are. When you bring your child in for a well-child visit each year we can help you anticipate what might be coming up next in your child’s life and how to prepare!

2. We want to get to know you during the good times in case we need to be there for you during the bad ones. Most of the time we get to see families for healthy visits for their kids. But sometimes we do have to deliver bad news. When that does happen, we want that news to come from someone you have built a relationship with. Your child’s well visit each year allows that to happen.

3. We don’t mind being the ice breaker. Sometimes your child (especially your teenager) will tell us stuff that they will not tell you. We know that can be hard to swallow as a parent and that’s why we are here to help break that ice for some of those conversations and to help guide you and them on how to talk about those awkward topics outside of our office.

4. We want to see your child throughout the year if you have a concern. You don’t have to wait for their well visit to come see us. It’s not uncommon for parents to come to a well visit with a list of concerns they have had for 6 months. If your child is having a recurring issue or something that you are concerned about for more than 2 weeks, schedule an appointment with your pediatrician.

5. It’s never too late to schedule a well-child visit. Typically kids have their well visit around their birthday each year. However, we know that life gets busy and that doesn’t always happen. It is never too late to schedule a well-child visit. Your child should have one each calendar year through age 18 to set a yearly baseline of health for your child. This way, if they need to come in later with a concern, we can know if it was or wasn’t there during the well visit. It’s also important to note that a sports physical does not count as a well-child visit. A sports physical can be done at your annual well visit, but if you come in just for a sports physical you should still schedule a well-child visit every year.

Pro tip for parents:

Set a recurring yearly calendar appointment on your phone the month before your child’s birthday to remember to call and schedule their well-child visit.