This is perhaps a slightly silly question, but is it compulsory to visit/accept visits from them once your baby has been born? I'm not trying to suggest that the role of the MCHN is not important, particularly if you find yourself in a challenging situation, but I am wondering whether we might be able to do the sort of routine check-ups that happen with the nurse (weighing, measuring, etc) ourselves instead. I'm sure the WHO has growth charts available on their website. Are there any opinions on this? Has anyone gone 'renegade'?
Basically I don't think you can be forced to do anything with your child.
I do take my girls to the MCHN. She is an older woman who has been the local community nurse forever I think. I find that she has some great ideas for all sorts of things and while I may not go to her with a problem, she has a wealth of knowledge on all sorts of stuff.
DH and I weigh and measure our girls regularly as well as the MCHN - as much as anything its because we like to compare where DD#2 is in terms of what DD#1 was.
the blue book has the growth weigth and HC charts in it.
though at teh check up it is a chance for an outside scource to pick up anything abnormal.
it is all covered by medicare so there is no expense.
as a nurse i reccomend this, not just so i get work, but it is also a vital part of a babies development as they pick up on milestones, and it also gives you a chnace to talk about any issues you have,
your Gp can do these checks aswell and will usually do them at the same time as the immunisations.
may i ask why you are thinking of not having them check you baby at teh intervals which are 1-4 weeks, 6-8 weeks then not again to 6-8 months, then 12 18 and 24 months.
Well, at the moment my husband and I are just talking about it purely because we're not sure...hmmm....how do I put this? We're not sure how comfortable we feel with the idea of measuring/comparing/ranking our child's growth and development according to an accepted standard (i.e. the notions of milestones and what baby 'should' be doing at certain times). That's a very vague response, I know, and I'm sorry - we're sort of in the early stages of discussing it. I suppose, also, both of us tend to visit medical professionals only in the event that something is wrong, and we have a similar philosophy when it comes to raising children. I'd have no qualms about the visits if I felt as though there was an issue, but I think in general terms our notions of pregnancy and parenting are very much tied to ideas of personal autonomy and independence. Again, sorry to be vague - we're still sort of working things out ourselves!
It is be no means compulsory, just a service that is offered. Initially i had a shocking judgmental MCHN so i went to my GP for the first few checks. My GP was more than happy for me to do that. Then i moved house and checked out the local MCHN and she rocks, so i go there now. i often miss scheduled appointments but i go if i have a question or haven't been for a while.
I think you can certainly measure and weigh your baby yourself, but the other checks such as their hearing, heart, hips and other development needs the eye of a specialist IMO, be it a mchn, your gp or similar person.
ETA- I definitely see your point on the milestones, i think there is often too much pressure for babies to meet these milestones, even though they are an 'average' thing IYKWIM. A good MCHN makes all the difference. Also your attitute towards the information you are given makes a big difference. I take most things with a grain of salt and things don't tend to worry me, so the checkups don't effect me if DD hasn't reached all the milestones. However i do see the stress it puts on friends if their child is not doing everything they 'should' be.
I do feel though it is a good screening program to pick up and abnormalities. A friends DD has hip dysplasia picked up early and was able to correct it without surgery, another friend had her babies hearing loss picked up early.
But again it is totally up to you.
Last edited by Junglemum; December 29th, 2008 at 05:35 PM.
sorry if it sounded like i was having a go at your for thinking of not doing it.
i totally understand and feel that sometimes teh recomended norm is just totally stupid.
my daughter is in the 25percentile for her growth and that, yes she is tiny we know that when we pick her up frmo school and all the other kids her age tower over her, but she is in proportion and healthy.
they did pick up her clicky hip, and also picked up reccurant runny nose and its cause.
Oh, no, not at all! I'm interested in lots of different opinions on this, and as Falguni suggested, your experience is always going to be informed by the kind of healthcare professionals you encounter - I have a few friends who have had hideous experiences with their MHCN, and friends who have been lucky enough to end up with amazing women...it's so variable, I'm sure. I think a big part of it is also just being worried about being judged for making certain (well-researched) decisions - for example, we're talking about vaccinations at the moment, and I know that there is an increased likelihood that if we decide to go an alternative route or delay vaccinations, there will be a bit of judgment. Perhaps that's just my fear of the experience of parenting, though - decisions being questioned and judged by other people. Minefields!
I can understand you asking. As the other girls have said, it's not compulsory and there are pros and cons of going and it mostly comes down to how well you gel with your MCHN.
I had a fantastic one who was very laidback, who calmed me down about things I was worried about and patted me on the back when I really needed it. Really, it was like going to see a nice relative who oohed and ahhhed over my baby and told me I was doing a great job.
I also had a different MCHN who made me feel guilty about the things that the 'nice' MCHN had made me feel calm about (ie. giving up breastfeeding because it wasn't working and I was scared I was going to get PND based on past history) and seemed intent on telling me what I should be doing rather than listening to what I was saying. And she didn't oooh and ahhh over DD but treated her like a number which I didn't like at all.
So I've seen the good and the bad. So I guess my advice would be to maybe go along for one appointment and see what you think and obviously return it there's something you're majorly concerned about.
Maternal and Child Health Nurse Question.
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