Bulletins help parents between check-ups

Canadian Medical Association Journal 1996; 154: 1619-1625


[Letters]

At least one third of medical appointments for children are regular check-ups. The main objective of these check-ups is to promote satisfactory growth, optimal development and good health. To attain this objective, physicians must provide parents with information, especially if the child is their first. Information provision requires time, and it is often difficult for parents to remember all of the information they are told. Furthermore, repetition of the same information quickly becomes tedious for the physician.

In view of this common situation, I have written a series of eight information bulletins, aimed at parents, to complement the information conveyed by the physician during regular check-ups.

There is a bulletin for each of the check-ups recommended by the Canadian Paediatric Society from birth to 2 years (the first is at 2 to 4 weeks and subsequent visits are at 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24 months). These bulletins are greatly appreciated by the parents because they contain information on growth and development, behaviour, vaccinations, prevention of accidents and poisonings, frequent health problems and other important topics. Parents can refer to them between check-ups to answer questions that would otherwise require a call to the physician.

Although intended for parents, the pediatric bulletins can be obtained only at a physician's office. For the past 2 years, more than 400 Quebec physicians have been using the French version. The bulletins were recently reviewed by a group of Canadian pediatricians and are now available in English. You can obtain a series for photocopying and make as many copies as you need for your patients. To order, or for more information, please contact: Continuing Medical Education, Room 1214, Faculty of Medicine, Laval University, Quebec QC G1K 7P4; tel. 418 656-5958; fax 418 656-2465; fmc@fmc.ulaval.ca.

Jean Labbé, MD, FRCPC
Université Laval
Quebec, Que.


CMAJ June 1, 1996 (vol 154, no 11)