Pediatric Health

Martin’s Point Maternity Care Management Program

This program is offered at no cost and provides education about the importance of prenatal, perinatal, and postpartum health and care for mom and baby by a dedicated care manager.

This program supports healthy term infants by providing:

• Assessments during each trimester and postpartum
• Education
• Support
• Advocacy
• A box of diapers will be provided after attending a postpartum visit

Well-Care Visits

The benefits of well-care visits are the completion of full head-to-toe examination and history:

• Prevention—including getting scheduled vaccinations
• Monitoring—tracking growth and development
• Screenings—including vision, hearing, school and sports physicals
• Guidance—including safety, dental care, sleep, screen time, diet, and activity
• Communication— including raising concerns about physical and psychosocial health

Your benefit allows for one annual physical exam every 12 months (with a 30-day grace period) with a primary care provider (PCP). If you haven’t already, please call your child’s PCP today to schedule a preventive health appointment and ensure their best health for years to come! 

Easily track your child's important wellness visits and recommended vaccines with the NEW Pediatric Preventive Care Checklist (PDF)

Sources:
https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/145/3/e20200013
https://www.aafp.org/afp/2018/0915/p347.html

For children aged 30 months or younger

Recommended visit schedule:

• Before 15 months there should be six or more well-care visits with a PCP
• Between 15 and 30 months of age there should be two or more well-care visits with a PCP

For children and adolescents aged 3 to 21 years

Recommended visit schedule:

• Between 3 to 21 years of age there should be at least one comprehensive well-care visit with a PCP or OB/GYN during the past year.
• Between 3 to 17 years of age there should be an annual well-care visit that addresses these topics:
  • Body Mass Index (BMI)—Documentation of a height, weight, and distinct BMI percentile
  • Nutrition—Documentation of nutrition being addressed (e.g., discussion of behaviors, referrals for nutrition education, providing educational materials, guidance, or counseling for weight or obesity)
  • Physical Activity—Documentation of physical activity being addressed (e.g., discussion of behaviors, referrals for physical activity, providing educational materials, guidance, or counseling for weight or obesity)

Immunization Schedules

For details regarding

• Childhood Immunization Schedule: Ages 0 to 6 Years
• Childhood Immunization Schedule: Ages 7 to 18 Years

Please visit https://www.healthwise.net/martinspoint/Content/StdDocument.aspx?DOCHWID=zj1461

Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

Did you know? About 14 million Americans, including male and female teens, become infected with HPV each year?

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) can lead to six types of cancer later in life, such as cervical or penis cancer, and four out of every 10 cases of cancer caused by HPV occur among men. The HPV vaccine is intended to protect both boys and girls against human papilloma virus. Per CDC recommendations, boys and girls 11- 12 years old should have two doses of the HPV vaccine. The vaccine can be given as early as age 9.

Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents/why-vaccinate/well-child-visits.html
https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/
https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/parents/about-hpv.html

Respiratory Infections

Treating your kids’ common cold? Antibiotics do not work on these pesky viruses!

More than 200 viruses can cause the common cold and they can spread easily through the air and close personal contact. With kids in school, they can often come home with stuffy noses, sneezing, coughing, ear or sinus pain, and fever.

When your child is suffering from upper respiratory infection (URI) symptoms (also known as the common cold), it is natural to want to help them feel better as quickly as possible. For many parents, that means asking the doctor to prescribe an antibiotic for their child. Unfortunately, most colds are caused by viruses, which antibiotics are not effective in treating. In fact, treating a viral infection with antibiotics can cause harm to your child.

Instead of antibiotics, your doctor is likely to suggest rest and fluids along with over-the-counter pain killers and decongestants to help reduce symptoms and help your child feel better. If your child’s cold lasts more than 10 days without improvement or they have symptoms that are severe or unusual, you should consult a doctor. The doctor will do a physical exam and, if they feel it necessary, they may swab the inside of your child’s nose or mouth to help determine what type of illness your child has and determine if any different treatment is needed.

Source:
https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/community/for-patients/common-illnesses/colds.html

Does your child have a sore throat? Antibiotics are not always the right treatment!

With sore throats, the cause will determine the treatment. Most sore throats are caused by viruses and will go away in 1-2 weeks on their own, without an antibiotic. Antibiotic treatment in these cases may cause harm to your child. Some sore throats are caused by bacteria. In children, only 20 to 30 percent of sore throats are caused by Group A streptococcus bacterium (strep throat).

You should consult a doctor if your child’s sore throat lasts longer than a week, if they have difficulty swallowing or breathing, and/or have drooling, rash, and joint pain. The cause could be a virus or bacteria. It can be hard for a doctor to tell the difference between a viral sore throat and a bacterial strep throat based only on a physical exam and symptoms. It is important for your doctor to know if your child’s sore throat is caused by a virus or streptococcus bacteria. They may swab your child’s throat for a rapid strep test (if available in the doctor’s office). If the rapid test is positive, they may immediately prescribe an antibiotic to help prevent the complications associated with this bacterium. If it is negative, part of the swab will be kept for culture. Within two to three days, it will show if the strep bacteria are present and then treatment will be determined.

If your child’s sore throat is viral, treatment will focus on their comfort, as there is no benefit and may be harm in using antibiotics. The doctor may recommend rest, acetaminophen (for pain), increased fluids and throat lozenges.

Source:
https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/community/for-patients/common-illnesses/sore-throat.html

Pediatric Behavioral Health

Did you know? One in six children 6-17 years old in the US experiences a mental health disorder each year.

It is important to watch for mental disorders in children and understand how they are treated because they can have a significant effect on overall health and relationships throughout life. Identifying problems early can help children get the support they need. At Martin’s Point, we want to work with your family to close gaps in care. Martin’s Point annually monitors the quality of our pediatric member’s behavioral health by claims submitted by their providers.

Source:
https://www.nami.org/mhstats
https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/index.html

Antipsychotic medications and needed monitoring

If your child or adolescent is aged 1-17 and is taking two or more antipsychotic medications listed below, they should have an annual blood sugar and cholesterol testing.
These medications can increase a child’s risk for developing serious metabolic health complications associated with poor cardiometabolic outcomes including weight gain, diabetes, and dyslipidemia. Given these risks and the potential lifelong consequences, metabolic monitoring is important to ensure appropriate management of children on behavioral health medications.

Please contact the doctor who prescribes your child’s medication to request labs such as cholesterol and blood sugar levels if this is not already scheduled.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication and monitoring

If your child is between 6- 12 years old and has been newly prescribed attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication, they should have three follow-up care visits within a 10-month period to assure the medication is working appropriately and there are no alterations needed:

• One within 30 days of when the first ADHD medication was filled
• If the child remains on the medication over six months, they should have at least two follow-up visits within nine months.
  
  • Atomoxetine (Strattera^®)
  • Clonidine (Catapres^®)
  • Dexmethylphenidate (Focalin^®)
  • Dextroamphetamine (Adderall^®)
  • Guanfacine (Intiniv ER^®)
  • Lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse^®)
  • Methylphenidate (Ritalin^®)
  • Methamphetamine (Desoxyn^®)

COVID-19 pandemic and stress

Everyone reacts differently to stressful situations. How you respond depends on you background, social support, your health, your community, and many other factors. Taking care of physical and mental health during this time is important. For young adults there are a few ways to care for themselves in small ways each day:

• Find creative ways to safely spend time with friends
• Head outside and get moving
• Eat healthy
• Get enough sleep
• Make time to relax by reading or listening to music

Source:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/mental-health/Young-Adults-Care-for-Yourself.pdf

Other behavioral health resources:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – 800-273-8255
State-specific resources:
Maine Crisis Hotline and Suicide Prevention Program
888-568-1112
https://www.maine.gov/suicide/help/signs.htm
New Hampshire Suicide Prevention Resource Center
https://www.sprc.org/states/new-hampshire
Vermont Suicide Prevention Center
https://vtspc.org/suicide-resources/get-help
New York State Suicide Prevention
https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/suicide_prevention
Massachusetts Suicide Prevention Program
877-870-4673
https://www.mass.gov/suicide-prevention-program
Pennsylvania Care Partnership
https://www.pacarepartnership.org/resources/crisis-and-hotlines

Martin’s Point Behavioral Health Pediatric Care Management Program

This program is offered at no cost and is designed to support best-practice care for your young patients. Our care managers are social workers with behavioral health training and expertise. When our care managers are notified of a member’s behavioral health hospitalization they outreach to the family after discharge and, if needed, assist with coordination of care to assure a smooth transition.

A care manager will:

• Complete a phone outreach to assess the family’s and child’s needs
• Collaborate with the care team
• Provide support and advocacy
• Finding local resources, providers and community supports
• Provide additional education regarding their conditions and the importance of follow up
• Assist in preparation for their office visits
• Follow up as needed by the family and child

To contact a Martin’s Point pediatric behavioral health care manager, please call 1-877-659-2403.