Date Published:
15 November 2006 |
6 Week Baby Check in General Practice Report (Ireland)
The check that babies are offered at 6 weeks of age is a key part of an
evidence based child health surveillance and screening service, and is a routine
part of the work of most general practitioners. However, up until now there
has been little opportunity to look at the quality of this service.
This project represents a very important and innovative approach to improving
the quality of services provided to parents and children. It demonstrates how
primary care plays a central part in child health surveillance and shows how
evidence may be translated into practice and result in greater satisfaction
for parents and better outcomes for children.
It also shows how improvements can be made in services that, although 'low
tech' and routine, have real potential in terms of not only detecting problems
at an early stage but also providing opportunities for promoting health.
This project was only possible because of the close working between the Irish
College of General Practitioners and the Health Service Executive through the
Programme of Action for Children. It demonstrates the potential of such collaborations
for improving the service professionals are able to give, by both involving
them directly and supporting them through training. On behalf of the project
steering group, we would like to thank all those involved in the project, and
in particular the parents and babies, the general practitioners and their teams
who made it such a success.
The challenge now will be to ensure that all babies and their parents can
receive a service of this quality. This project will certainly have played
a key point in achieving this.
News is included
on the IvyRose website to inform visitors about current health issues,
but not to endorse
any particular
view or activity. The views stated in the article above are not
necessarily those of IvyRose Ltd.. Material in this news item was released
by
The Irish College of General Practitioners (Coláiste Dhochtúiri
Teaghlaigh Éireann) on 15 November
2006 and may have been edited (e.g. in style, length, and/or for
ease
of understanding
by our international readers) for inclusion here. For further information,
please visit their website using the link below.
|
