Taking it to the streets – South West nurses bring check ups into ECEC services

Nurses will bring their services to early childhood education and care (ECEC) services in Western Australia as part of a new pilot after data revealed a drop in the number of children attending health checks.

In 2019-20, 60 per cent of one-year-old children attended their universal child health check and 43 per cent attended when they turned two, meaning important opportunities for early intervention in health and developmental issues may have been missed. 

The pilot will see child health nurses meet parents and carers at convenient locations such as childcare centres, Bunbury Library, playgroups and primary schools to make health checks easier and more accessible for local parents.

Speaking with local media source The West Australian clinical nurse specialist Karina Ayers said the additional locations were working to increase accessibility and help address the low percentage of one and two-year-olds who present for screenings.

“This pilot aims to increase those figures by making it more convenient for parents and carers to get their little ones checked so we can work with them on achieving important development milestones in communication, physical development, problem solving and social-emotional wellbeing,” she explained.

Families can also arrange an in-home visit if they have unique needs which prevent them from attending in person. 

WACHS universal health checks are free and can help families get referrals to other health professionals who specialise in child development. For more information please see here. 

The original coverage of this story can be found here.