The physicians and nurse practitioners of PHCA follow the routine well child care schedule as endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Children should see their primary care provider for a 20 minute visit at the following intervals:
- 24-48 hours after leaving the hospital
- 1 month of age
- 2 months of age
- 4 months of age
- 6 months of age
- 9 months of age
- 12 months of age
- 15 months of age
- 18 months of age
- 24 months of age
- 30 months of age
- Annually from age 3 through age 21
At these visits, your child will be weighed and measured. A set of vital signs, including blood pressure, will be obtained. The physician or nurse practitioner will answer general questions you may have about your child; please feel free to bring a brief list to aid you. You or your child will be asked to complete questionnaires to help the provider identify areas of concern. These questionnaires can be completed prior to each well child visit through the MyChart Patient Portal. We encourage every patient and family to maintain an active MyChart Portal account to best facilitate communication between you and your PHCA providers.
In the infant and toddler stages, your child’s feeding, sleeping, toileting, and behavior are routinely discussed. The provider will also determine whether your child is meeting developmental milestones such as speech development and motor skills. For school-aged children, providers will focus more upon your child’s academic achievement as well as their social relationships. Teens are asked to spend some time speaking with the doctor without a parent present, regarding topics such as substance abuse and sexuality; please click here to read more about why we recommend this.
At all well visits, your child will receive a complete physical examination. You will discuss safety issues pertinent to your child’s stage of development. If there have been changes in your family medical history, or there have been significant stressors in your family recently, please be sure to mention them at these visits as well. Finally, please be advised that routine vaccinations and/or laboratory screening will likely be offered to your child. As vaccine recommendations change frequently, please visit our For Parents page for links to the most current vaccine information available.
All Well Child Visits can be scheduled online through the MyChart Patient Portal. If you are unable to schedule your appointment online, please call our office scheduling line, 978-535-1110, and our staff will be able to assist you.
Sick appointments
Same-day appointments for acute medical concerns are available at all five of our offices. Urgent appointments may also be available during night and weekend hours in our Peabody office. We strongly encourage you to schedule these with your child’s primary provider whenever possible, particularly when symptoms are part of a previously diagnosed problem (such as asthma or headaches). However, we will make every effort to find a time convenient for you. Our sick appointments range from 10 to 20 minutes in length. In order to book the appropriate amount of time for your child, please be as detailed as possible when describing your child’s symptoms.
Some sick visits can be scheduled online through the MyChart Patient Portal. If you are unable to schedule your appointment online, please call our office scheduling line, 978-535-1110, and our staff will be able to assist you.