How a Pediatrician Can Help Your Child during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Many families are enduring difficult times due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some parents can’t care for their children, and families face uncertainty, loss of loved ones, or employment. Unfortunately, such challenges can bring anxiety to parents, children, and families. In such situations, a pediatrician can support families, especially children facing emotional and physical distress.
A pediatrician plays a vital role in advising and educating parents on their children’s behavioral and emotional aspects. Their guidance emphasizes the essence of keeping children safe and healthy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Behavioral and Emotional Problem Screening
Pediatricians can help parents with screening their kids for behavioral and emotional problems. Also, they can screen kids for health’s social determinants, such as family functioning and food security, considering the inextricable connection between emotional and social health.
Many pediatricians ask parents about emotional and social health during regular well-check visits. That’s because they want families to understand that these aspects are as vital as physical health and end stigma towards emotional, social, and behavioral difficulties. That way, families can express issues that may affect child growth and development.
Addressing Mental Health Issues
Many kids may suffer from issues affecting them mentally in silence because parents are too busy providing for them. However, they may open up during pediatrician visits, and doctors can help parents manage stress and juvenile depression issues.
For example, some school-going children have difficulties focusing during virtual or physical classes due to the economic and emotional problems they face at home. Pediatricians can help such kids talk about the issues affecting them and, together with parents, develop a plan for ending the distractions.
Final Thoughts
Kids deserve proper care and attention from parents or guardians. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought uncertainty and stress, affecting even children. Pediatricians can help parents identify issues arising from the pandemic that may affect proper child growth and development. And together with parents, they can find ways to solve such problems and ensure good growth and development of the kids.
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