From infancy through childhood to adolescence and young adulthood, your child’s health and well-being are your responsibility and overriding concern. Your pediatrician partners with parents in keeping their child’s physical, emotional, and mental health on track. They welcome your questions as opportunities to educate parents and young patients on a wide range of health and wellness topics. Here are some questions you, as a parent, may want to ask your child’s pediatrician.
What Is Your Vaccination Policy?
Healthcare providers believe that today’s immunizations are safe and effective in preventing a whole host of communicable diseases which can seriously impact the health and well-being of children and adolescents.
As such, it is recommended to follow the immunization schedules published by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control as the best way to keep children and adolescents protected. It is also important to note that some practices may not accept new patients whose families choose not to receive routine vaccinations.
What Is Your Sick-visit Policy?
Many practices, like BridgeSpan Medicine, keep a separate waiting area for sick babies, children, and adolescent patients. Pediatricians are acutely aware that teens and young adults want as much privacy and confidentiality as possible when they receive health care. They also wish to keep patients who may have a contagious condition away from our routine patients who may be coming to see them for a wellness check-up, sutures, or other services.
Also, many pediatrician clinics near you have routine office hours Monday through Friday, 9 am to 5 pm. They leave room in their schedule for a limited number of sick visits. They are also likely available by phone for questions or concerns and have an online patient portal for non-urgent questions, appointment scheduling, medication refills, and more.
What Lab Services Do You Perform?
Onsite lab testing is a great convenience for our healthcare providers, parents, and young patients. There’s no running to a separate testing lab in another part of town, and results are available to physicians and parents/patients quickly.
Plus, fast onsite diagnostics help providers deliver accurate diagnoses with quick turnaround times. That way, patients get treated and feel better as soon as possible.
At BridgeSpan Medicine, our onsite lab services include STI and UTI testing, tests for the flu, mono, strep infection, and others, along with CBC and metabolic tests for high cholesterol and glucose.
Do You Screen for Mental Health Issues?
Mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, are very common through adolescence. In fact, they impact about 40 percent of kids in their teen years.
Adolescents must receive accurate and compassionate screening for mental health issues. When detected, they can be treated with counseling and, if necessary, medication and referral to outside mental health providers. In short, yes, most pediatricians, like the providers at BridgeSpan Medicine, offer mental health screenings of all kinds and start patients on the journey to wellness young.
When Should My Son or Daughter Switch to a Primary Care Physician Who Sees Adults?
Some pediatric patients make that switch when entering college. Others, such as young people with special needs, may continue indefinitely with the pediatrician who has followed them for years. With BridgeSpan Medicine, our pediatricians are experts in adolescent medicine–from ages 15 to 21, and those are the ages of the vast majority of our patients.
Can You Help My Adolescent Who May Have an Eating Disorder?
BridgeSpan Medicine provides the first line of defense against the devastation of eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, and others. The Journal of the American Medical Association reports a significant increase in eating disorders among teens since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
So, if you are concerned about your child being ill in this way, know that Bridgespan Medicine, along with many other pediatrician offices near you, have the resources to identify nutritional deficits and to refer to specialists who are experts in the assessment and treatment of young people with eating disorders.
When Should My Teen Come in For a Wellness Check-up?
Most pediatric clinics recommend once a year or more often if there is a pressing medical concern or if the patient is being followed for a chronic health condition, such as diabetes or asthma. Also, many healthcare providers perform exams for sports, keep the paperless chart (electronic record), and sign documentation needed for school, daycare, physical education, and more. We want parents to consider us as their children’s medical home.
Do You Provide Contraception for Teens?
Contraception is just one aspect of sexual wellness services that pediatric clinics offer. True sexual wellness encourages open and honest communication about the responsibilities of sexual behavior. At BridgeSpan Medicine, our pediatricians provide a safe space for young people to ask questions and express concerns about sexual wellness, medical care, and relationships that are healthy and beneficial.
Pediatric Clinic for Adolescent Medicine in Purchase, NY
At BridgeSpan Medicine, our team of six board-certified pediatricians helps young people ages 15 to 21 with the latest and most compassionate medical care available. We understand the special concerns our patients have at this formative and transitional time of their lives, and we’re here to ensure total wellness–physical, mental, and emotional.
For the answers to more of your questions, call us to arrange an in-office consultation at (914) 698-5544 or request a visit online. We look forward to seeing you and your family soon.
