Well Child and Well Baby Visits
Does My Child Need a Check-Up?
There are certain ages that children need to come to our office for a visit. Babies need to be monitored closely for growth and development, and require frequent vaccinations.
Older children should be evaluated every 1 - 2 years and may require an in-office exam. The chart below shows the recommended schedule of visits for children.
Age
Visit Details
Babies are usually checked by a health care provider within the first week of going home from the hospital.
At this first visit your child's health care provider will:
Weigh your baby and measure your baby’s length and head circumference.
Check for signs of jaundice.
Check on how feeding is going for you and your baby.
Do a general health exam.
Ask how the family is adjusting to the new baby.
Complete any screening tests that were not done at the hospital.
1 week
When you take your child to a well-child visit, your child's health care provider will:
ask about your child’s eating habits, sleep habits,
ask about your child's developmental milestones, language milestones, and social and emotional issues,
do a physical examination,
check weight, height and head circumference,
give any necessary vaccines. If your child's health care provider doesn’t give vaccines, they will tell you where to get them.
They will also answer any questions you may have.
*Once your child is 5 years old, they will see their health care provider every 1 to 2 years until they are 18 years old.
2, 4, 6, 9, 12 & 18 months, and 2-5 years*
For Dr. Karen Chu’s patients with children 2 years or younger:
We are piloting online booking for well-baby visits with Dr. Chu!
If you child is a patient of Dr. Chu, and they are due for their 1, 2, 4, 12 or 18 month visit, please click here to book an in-person appointment for your child. If there are no online spots available, then please call to book by phone, or check back later (the system will not allow you to book more than 30 days in advance). When you are booking an appointment, you will be asked some questions about what your child is able to do (for example are able to smile or roll? ) at the time of booking.
You may have noticed that months 6, 9 and 15 are not available for online booking. We do still want to see your child at these ages! However, at these ages, your well-baby visit can generally be booked with our Registered Nurse instead of Dr. Chu. If your child is due for one of these age visits, please call us to book an appointment. For now, we are starting with online booking just with the physician.
We encourage you to try this system to see how it works, and hope it is of convenience for you. Please also know that you do not have to use this system and can call our front desk at any point to book your appointment.
For Dr. Cathy Kamens’s patients between the ages of 4 to 18 years:
We understand that during the pandemic, routine care for healthy school-age children has been deferred. However, as we slowly ramp up, we are excited to offer you the opportunity to bring your children between the ages of 4 and 18 back in for care!
Preventive care is an essential aspect of children's health. Typically, school-age children require routine check-ups every 1-3 years, depending on their healthcare needs. There is also a set of vaccines recommended between the ages of 4-6, additional vaccines given in grade 7 (usually in school), and a booster required around 14-15 years old.
If your child has not been seen in a few years or may be due for some of these vaccines, we encourage you to book an appointment online with us, click here, in the next few months to catch up on their care. We have reserved some spots for online booking or you can call our office to arrange an appointment.
Our team is excited to see your children again and provide the care they need to thrive.
For all other patients that require a well baby or well child visit:
Please call our office at 416-470-6690 to book in your appointment.