By Dr. Rebecca Katzman

One of the foundations of primary care is what is known as preventative health care. This is an umbrella description of screenings, counseling, and interventions to help people get and stay healthy. While we often speak about preventative services for adults, we know that infants, children, and adolescents also benefit from check-ups with their primary care providers to help stay healthy and safe. Often parents or guardians associate well child visits with vaccinations, but there are many more aspects and intents of these visits. Even if vaccinations are not going to be performed, children benefit from well child visits.
Taking measurements such as height and weight allow us to assess if growth is on track or if another medical condition might be present. Screenings for developmental milestones, hearing and vision issues, autism, and dental health are performed periodically at different ages. Identifying concerns early is key to making sure children get the resources they need to thrive. These visits are also prime opportunities for parents and caregivers to engage in questions and discussions about growth, development, safety, or any other concerns.
Nutrition, family history, sports participation, lead poisoning, social media, sleep – these are all topics that are reviewed at different ages of well child visits. The well child visit is an ideal time to review how to keep children safe; accidental injuries unfortunately make up the largest burden of pediatric deaths in the country. More than ever, we want our communities to be healthy and safe. Even if your child may not be “due” for a service, such as a vaccine or sports physical, it may be time to get them scheduled for their well child visit.