Monday 5 September 2011

Development Check

Health care here in the UK is free. Everyone must be registered to a GP surgery (clinic) in their  catchment area and assigned to a General Practitioner. Hospitalization and any take home meds are also free (you will have to pay for your usual meds of course, unless you're exempted). And if a woman becomes pregnant she will be assigned a midwife who would be looking after you throughout your pregnancy (unless it is a complicated pregnancy, then the GP would be more involved). Once you have given birth, your baby will be under the care of your own GP plus a Health visitor. One of the health visitors will visit you at home to check on how you are getting on. They will also check the baby to see if he is gaining weight and that everything is ok. They are there to give you advice on breastfeeding, nappies, sleeping or anything about looking after your new baby. They will come to visit you as long as you need them or as long as they feel it is necessary. Apart from this they also have clinics that you could visit weekly, again to have your baby weighed and if you have any questions. I found this really useful, coz being away from home, I needed all the support that I could get.

All newborn babies are given this red book
They did a development check when Poj was under a year old and we recently went for his 2-year check. It was really relaxed and informal, they just checked if he is up to date with his vaccines, if he had a hearing test done when he was born and if we have any concerns with his hearing and eyesight, they asked about his sleeping patterns, discussed his diet and they also asked if he goes to nursery & where. They also asked if he was already talking and how much. They did the usual weight & height measurement, observed his behaviour, checked how he solves puzzles, name the characters in each set (animals, cars, fruits etc )  and what he'll do with the little blocks given to him. They also asked him to draw lines and circles. 
I have raised my only concern which is his lack of appetite and they've advised me what to do (which I'm happy to say has worked, yay!) After writing her report and signing Poj's (red) record book,  the lady gave me leaflets about iron, what the recommended iron intake should be and a list of food with their corresponding iron content. She also gave me leaflets and talked me through potty training (we've just started this and again he's been an absolute star!  But we still a long way to go, so wish us luck).  All in all it was a good consultation, it was great to have a confirmation that he is on the right track and we are doing the right things.


And before going home, like they did on his previous check, they again gave Poj a bag of goodies... We went home a happy pair!


Bag filled with Books, crayons, sketch pad etc

15 comments:

  1. Wow! So generous naman at may Bag of godies para kay Poj! Ang dami ah!
    By anney on Development Check at 15:41

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  2. @anney i know! They love books & want kids to develop the love for reading, kaya laging may free books. I remember when I signed him up for a library card, they gave him a free book as a gift =)
    By Kristeta ♥ (kalokang Pinay) on Development Check at 15:46

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  3. wow.. sana ganyan din dito. My gosh we're so behind. Imagine yung health security for you and your kids. Napakalaking tulong nun. Tapos my awesome freebies pa. Wait ka lang sis. Papunta na kami dyan. haha..
    By mayen on Development Check at 17:30

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  4. @mayenYou're right sis, laking tulong na rin - i appreciate how expensive vaccines are tsaka syempre andyan yung support na readily available. Tsaka si Erick din, exempt sya so free mga gamot nya. Naku sis, sabihin mo lang kelan ang dating nyo at susundo kami sa airport! =)
    By Kristeta ♥ (kalokang Pinay) on Development Check at 19:19

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  5. i love the goodie bag! :)
    salamat sa pagdaan sa page ko. i want to follow you but i cant seem to find the follow button?

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  6. wow! so nice naman yung goodies. sana meron din niyan dito para naman maramdaman ang mga taxes na binabayaran. hehe!

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  7. iba talaga pag nasa first world country, aalagaan ka talaga ng government. sad to say, hindi ganyan sa bansa natin. hayz... but i'm happy that your son is getting all the health support that he needs :)

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  8. swerte niyo naman jan, free ung mga ganyan bagay.. ang cute cute ng mga books, pads, crayons and etc..

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  9. ang galing naman :0 kelan kaya magiging ganyan dito? :)

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  10. wow nice,sana ganyan din dito sa Pinas when it comes to healthcare no? love your loots for that day dear. oh btw, what did they advised you about your kiddo's lack of appetite,mukhang kelangan ko din yan.thanks! ;)

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  11. @Missus Cee You're welcome & Thanks din for dropping by. The follow button is just above my twitter button if you're still interested. =)
    Kakatuwa nga eh, it was a different bag from last time - this one is perfect for his other books that we bring with us when we go out. Sponsored naman ng bookshop and Crayola ang mga freebies but they are still very much appreciated =)

    @michi Yun nga, sis. Ang taas talaga ng taxes dito. Pero when we go to the library where they have proper kiddie area with great activities for different age groups, free healthcare & school, you can see where some your taxes go.

    @Marjorie Thanks Marj, we have health clinics din naman sa atin, siguro kaylangan lang ng better goverment officials para ma-maximize ang potential ng mga government agencies =)

    @mommy-razz Thanks mommy =) Perfect for Poj as he loves books. Medyo hinay lang ako sa pagpagamit ng crayons, i prefer to give him the washable crayons that i bought him, kasi minsan wall na namin ang canvas nya eh, lol =)

    @kath Like what I said to Marj, siguro political will din ang kailangan, we have these government agencies in place, most of them probably just needs better management. At nagbabayad din naman ng tax ang mga tao sa Pinas eh =)

    @Sapphire Mommy Thanks for dropping by =)
    The lady asked kasi how much milk he has throughout the day - and he used to ask for milk A LOT! She told me to limit this to breakfast & bedtime, para may appetite pa sya sa gabi. She also told me to not force feed or quarrel with him, lalo lang daw di kakain, just lay out the food and he will eat when he's hungry. It all worked, I tried to be strong kasi nung una may tantrums, pero ngayon he eats during mealtiimes, i refuse din to give him snacks pagmalapit na meal times. And pag ayaw nya talaga, i don't force him - then he'll ask for food later on. Now di na stressful ang mealtiimes namin =)

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  12. the health system there is really very similar here... pero I think it's even better there kasi may free books! hehehe. Dito puro mga products (promotional) naman ang free. When I was pregnant ang daming nabigay sa akin na pacifiers eh nde naman nagamit ni Little Spanish Pinay dahil she never liked pacifiers. Mami lang talaga ang pacifier nya hay.

    ang nakakapressure pala is yung test... with all the identifications and drawing lines and circles.. pano pag nde pa marunong by that age.. ayan worry naman ako haha.

    Spanish Pinay

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  13. @Spanish Pinay i was interested to hear about your healthcare services, i thought it would be similar.
    Puro mga sponsored lang din naman yung mga books & crayons na bigay, but still very much appreciated. Haha, dami bang nagbigay ng pacifiers? Can't remember getting any, pero dami ding freebies lalo na sa hospital after we gave birth, nappies, wipes, baby toothpastes, nappy rash cream, johnson products etc. Sarap nga e, kahit konti lang they helped nung umpisa. Yun namang observations, the health visitors are lovely. They always say they are there to guide and answer questions and would never judge. Meron silang gustong makita, like nung 1st year when they handed Jace a book they wanted to see if he would flip tbe pages, para makita nila if you read to your child. If not they'll encourage you to. They want to see if everything was normal, if he can pick up items, pincer grasps - and other things. Eyesight normal - if he can see little details on pictures etc. They would assure you that it doesnt matter if he doesn't get all of it right, kasi daw at that age di pa naman lahat kaya. But they need to let the child do these excercises for them to see what they're looking for.
    But I'm with you, mga moms talaga madaling ma-pressure coz we want our little ones to do well. But they are good at reminding moms that kids will learn all these things in no time at all & we shouldn't worry too much =)

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  14. wow good for you. sana ganyan din dito sa Pinas. thanks for sharing! =)

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  15. I wish RP had a better healthcare system. For now we just have to content ourselves with Philhealth. Hay!

    www.theaveragejane00900.blogspot.com

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