Well-Check Visits

I was just reading a topic in the 2-4 year old forum about well-check visits. Not going into the subject exactly, but I noticed on many responses people said they don't take their children to well-check ups anymore past around ages 3 and up. Is this typical? My kids are 5 and have just had their 5 year well-check and my doctor (entire practice) will not see a child (as in, will not take your child as a patient) if you don't go EVERY year up to age 21! (Once I was late - for their 4 year well-check and I had to make a sick visit and they refused to see my kids until the appt. was made) It's a huge practice with 10 or so doctors across NJ (4 offices). I thought it was standard practice that every child goes every year, no matter what. But now I read differently! Just curious if you always take your kids every year.

(Also, I think my doctor is too invasive at these appointments - they make my kids get blood work EVERY year at the lab as part of the well-check, and they say this is standard in their practice. I am actually going to try to refuse that this year as I think that is just too much to do every year if nothing is going on, medically speaking. I have the paperwork already from the appointment, but I'm going to call this week to see if they'll give me a hard time if I refuse to go this year. Does the doctor suggest this as well for your kids? I always thought it was strange and so do a lot of my friends who see other pediatricians. No one I know of has had their kids do this - except for those iron and lead tests when they were younger and such. These blood tests are full panels - CBC and other things.)

Anyway, thanks for your input! Just a tad curious is all :huh:

 

Wow. I think any dr that required that, even requiring you to take them in before a sick visit....I'd have to find a new dr myself. While I totally think well baby checks are essential, by the age of 5 I don't think it's as big of a deal. And they've changed the shot schedule yet again, so my twins don't get shots until they are like 5 yrs old. I think my daughter will be 7 or 9 at her next ones and my oldest will be 12.

It may make a difference that we see a family dr rather than a pediatrician. And my kids have never had bloodwork done past having their bilirubin levels checked after birth.

 

I posted over in 5-11 board about well checks. I do take the kids every year. My children are all (soon to be) seven and under. Our insurance covers all well checks along with vaccinations so I take them. I will continue because I go yearly to the doctor myself and think it's a good idea in general. I never went much as a child and wish my mom would have had me go even as a teen. Anyway, my doctor is NOTHING like your doctor. Of course, I've never missed a well check yet though. But, as far as I know they never would turn us down for a sick appointment. And, they don't take blood. At least not at this point. They do recommend me for the lead test at a year for the kids but I have to take them to the hospital to do it and I just skip that. If I had a doctor like yours I would be finding a new one. I think it's crazy to not allow a sick patient to be seen because they haven't had their well visit yet.

 

Keep in mind that once school starts, well child checks aka, physicals are required for most school systems every other year if not every year. That increases to every year if the child is involved in sports of any kind.


We have a family practitioner, who sees ALL of the family and knows our medical history pretty well. We get a phone call or post card a few months before we are due for a yearly exam, reminding us to call and make an appointment. The girls insurance pays for their well child physical each year until 18 I believe. As an adult, mine would cover an appointment with either my FP, or OB/GYN for a yearly physical.

 

I posted in the other forum too along with my reasons.


I think it is really important to have well-checks. I have heard many things seen/treated at those visits and it also gives great baseline data for Drs. Things like anemia, hernias, developmental delays, speech/hearing/sight, allergies, heart murmurs, behavioral concerns, asymptomatic UTIs, dental suggestions, etc Even the blood work provides good data. No, it is not fun (and no out Drs dont do it every year but every other) but it can give early warning for things that dont have visible clues.

Even if our insurance did not cover it, we would get them at the community clinics that are available before school for very little cost.

Plus, any kiddo playing sports should have a through exam to check for hernias, heart health, lung health, etc to help prevent injury. I know there is a lot of discussion for them to do heart checks on Middle and High School athletes to detect silent heart concerns that have been seen in the news lately.

Our whole family does well checks (adults too!) every year just as a maintenance check. For adults, this is often the time to find cholesteral, prediabetic, hypertension, etc that may be overlooked or not routinely checked for when you go in for an illness.

Like anything else- routine checks for your health can prevent issues later. It is easier to be proactive than reactive.

 

When I worked at a pediatrician's office, we requested at least annual well checks until age 5. Then after 5, you could go to every two years unless you needed school physicals/school forms filled out; if the last physical was less than a year prior, we could just fill out the forms, if it was more than a year, you had to come back in.

 

My boys are 10, and go every year for their well child visit. Since their birthday is in June, we go at the end of the school year. Both my boys have meds for school, and we get that paperwork taken care of at that time. With the Affordable Health Care Act, all well visit checks are fully covered, so there really is no reason not to go. The mandated coverage started this summer, although my insurance started covering them 2 years ago.

As for blood work, that is a bit extreme. Both boys have only had blood draws done once--Marcus, when he had been sick with a high fever for 4 days, and broke out in spots, and Jon when he had a bite we feared was Lymes.

 

I think it depends on peds...our old ped past 5 only did well check ups every other year. We switched peds 2 years ago and this new practice does them every year. So even my almost 12 year goes for a well visit yearly (I actually just called and made her appt yesterday for early Nov). :good: Our schools don't require physicals for the kids until they get to high school and start to play sports.

My kids have never had bloodwork done at any of their well visits. The only bloodwork that my kids have ever had done was Emilie and Trevor had to have a lead test due to our zipcode before entering K last year.

 

We have taken both girls (10) every year. This was the first year the girls had their blood drawn, but we did have the option to wait until next year, when it will be required.

 

My oldest DD has not been to our regular ped for several years except for shots or illness. She gets a check up several times a year at Shriners Hospital when she goes for her scoliosis. We have never been refused an appointment even though it is more than a year. None of my girls have ever had bloodwork done by the doctor except the iron tests.

 

Our schools don't require physicals except for sports. I take my girls because they have to have new scripts for their daily meds. Otherwise the doc won't fill them and I'd have sick kids. No blood work here. The state tested them for lead at 1. They did all of jessys blood draws for surgery while she was under!

 

I believe in yearly well checks. My brother and I went yearly as kids and I still go all the time due to health issues. That being said about the blood work... my nephew's type one diabetes was caught at a well check up long before he got seriously ill like so many kids. He was extremely lucky. Often kids are pretty sick by the time they are diagnosed. His doctor always did routine blood work. There is no diabetes in the family he was the first type 1. So while your kids may seem very healthy its that slight chance something is going on in the inside that you can't see. So my boys will be going yearly until they leave home.

 

My girls Dr. requires well check yearly. It doesn't bother me a bit to take them in for a quick visit to check their progress. We have a good relationship with the dr and him and the nurse know us. I feel that if they see my kids, they can help monitor any issues.

 

Our schools require yearly checks as well (even the preschool!), I'm pretty sure it's state law...otherwise, honestly, I'd probably skip an every year thing . And we haven't needed to do any blood work either. They suggested we get iron/lead levels checked when they were a year old, but the lab wasn't able to get a draw on Ellie (I could hear her screaming from the waiting room, she was with my mom), they suggested we come back in a couple of months and by then I'd talked to th pedi and we don't live in an older house not a lot of hand me down toys...so weren't really concerned with lead levels. So we skipped it entirely. Allergy skin testing however.... we've gone through *that* a couple of times!

 

mine go yearly - I agree I'd be changing peds if they refused a sick child visit because I didn't get in for a yearly checkup...

as for bloodwork, mine have never had a blood draw...

 

We go every year for a well visit, and will continue that for a long while. I think an annual physical is important, and thankfully it is completely covered by insurance. They did bloodwork at age 5, and I think at 6. I don't even remember. As an IVF momma, honestly, I feel that my kids need to at least be able to tolerate a blood draw, so we all just remain calm and professional about the process and they are fine with it for the most part.

 

We went every year till 5. Since they were done with shots it honestly did not cross my mind to take them. We did set up an appt to take them this year, they are 9.

 

My girls go every year. It has always been covered by insurance . I might have to go later next year so it is 12 months after this years. Our school districts elementary school needs a medical form filled out going into K, 2nd and 4th. Not sure what is need in grades 6-12. We also need a medical form for camp every year, not really sure how well they check it since the date on the form i handed in said 2011 instead of 2012. Our pedi gives us a copy of their well check visit with shot records. Any time I need to have the pedi fill out a medical form, I just fill it out and attach the form from their well check visit.

 

My kids are only five, so we've gone every year for the well child checkup. It's covered by our insurance until they're 18 so we'll probably continue to go. Our pedi says yearly is good, but if you're self pay, she's happy with every two years as well. We've never had blood tests done - they only do them if you live in a house build prior to 1970s (for lead paint) or there's evidence of an issue.

I don't think I'd be able to stay with your pediatrician... that's way too authoritarian for me!

 

We go every year because I'd never thought to do otherwise. As for the blood test, our doctor does a written screen to see if there are any factors that indicate you should have one. I know at 6, our pediatrician started asking about cholesterol but my son has yet to have blood taken for it since there is not a history of high cholesterol in our family.

 

We did that this year, and I thought for sure we would have to have some done since Mikey plays and paints with lead figurines (the hobby question). But nope! And I was shocked that they didn't have to have a PPD done. (Tuberculosis test.)

 

We go every year. I think the school district requires a medical form, and it's covered by insurance. Plus, our ped's office nags us if we don't go at least yearly.

The only blood draws they've had so far were to test for celiac -- nothing that was just routine. I don't think the ped even asked about cholesterol, though everyone in DH's family has high cholesterol, so I should probably bring it up.