Your HEALTHmatters

It is important to take your child to their primary care provider (PCP) for regular check-ups, even if your child seems healthy. These no-cost well-visits allow the PCP to check your child’s health and address health concerns early on.

During a well-child visit, the PCP will:

• Examine your child’s body.
• Give your child vaccines they are due for.
• Track growth and development (weight, height and how your child plays, learns, speaks, acts and moves).
• Do screenings based on your child’s age (hearing, vision and/or potential lead exposure).
• Share advice on healthy eating, keeping your child’s gums and teeth healthy, sleep and safety.
• Talk about health concerns and work with you to make a plan to address them.
• Refer your child to specialists if needed.

Tips to get the most out of well-child visits:

Bring a list of questions/concerns, such as:

• Is my child at a healthy weight?
• Does my child need any screenings or vaccines?
• How much screen time is okay for my child?
• I noticed my child often does ___: is this typical for their age?

Bring any information you think your child’s PCP should be aware of, such as:

• Your child’s vaccination record.
• Any after-visit summaries from recent urgent care, emergency room or hospital visits.

Children under three years old should have check-ups at 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24 and 30 months.

Schedule your child’s next well-visit before you leave the PCP’s office. Ask for a reminder card and put the visit date in your calendar.