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Dr Fran Arcuri Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist

Body Image and motherhood By Dr Sam Margis (Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist)

Is it normal for a toddler to be a fussy eater? By Melbourne Dietitian, Nicole Bando

Bringing your kids for an immunisation can be daunting...... For your child and yourself! Rest assured that our practice nurses are very experienced and they have some tips to help you prepare. Bring your child’s health and development book (green book) to every appointment. Although most records are now online sometimes these records need to be double checked. Having your child’s vaccines documented in their green book provides a consistent record. Preparation is key, it is important to talk with your nurse or doctor about your concerns about vaccines. Before administering any vaccine, the nurse will talk you through the process and develop an effective plan to ensure it is smooth and easy. If you have any requests from the nurse on how to approach yourself or your child, it is important to discuss these further. Bring along your child’s favourite toy or a treat for afterwards. Distraction, relaxation, and other measures reduce distress and pain after vaccination in young children. Topical anaesthetics, such as EMLA or Angel cream, are not routinely recommended. They could be considered in a child with excessive fear. For older children relaxation techniques can often be helpful. Vaccines are administered in the legs for children under the age of 12 months and in the arms for children over the age of 12 months. Therefore, we would recommend suitable clothing depending on your child’s age. The Royal Children’s Hospital provide some further resources about providing comfort for kids https://www.rch.org.au/comfortkids/for_kids/

UPDATE JULY 2021 Extraordinary times require extraordinary changes. This could not be more relevant during a worldwide pandemic. Just like you and your family, NEST has had to implement many changes to adapt to the current situation. Our services are all still operational, albeit in a slightly different way to normal. Please read below for the most current update. Health care is an essential service and now more than ever, it is important to take care of your physical and mental health! We continue to enforce strict screening and infection control measures (in line with the latest government health advice) to ensure that our patients have access to the care they need whilst reducing the risk to our staff and other patients. NEST continues to provide excellent health care to your family. Our staff have been working harder than ever during the COVID pandemic. The government has extended the telehealth options and we are pleased to provide flexible and convenient ways to continue to care for your families during the current health crisis by offering the choice of telehealth and face to face appointments. MASKS: Masks are still required when inside NEST Family Clinic. Please ensure you have one with you when you arrive for your appointment. COVID VACCINE: NEST is not stocking the COVID vaccine (AZ or Pfizer). For information on where and how to book this in, please visit https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/book-your-vaccine-appointment NEST General Practice: Telehealth and face to face appointments can be booked online (via HotDoc) or by calling reception (1300 637 832). Please ensure you answer questions truthfully when booking in, so that our staff and other patients are not put at risk. Please wait in your car or outside the clinic and your GP will call you and go through our screening questions before bringing you into the clinic. Please note that patients with symptoms such as cough, sore throat, runny nose, fever, shortness of breath and/or loss of taste or smell and patients who have been in close contact with a positive COVID case or are waiting on a COVID test result or patients who have returned form interstate or overseas travel in the past 14 days or been to any recent 'hot spots' will need to begin with a telehealth consultation or be seen in our 'Respiratory Clinic' times. If the GP feels that they are unable to see you face to face owing to their screening criteria, they will discuss this with you. **If attending the clinic for a face to face appointment, please do not bring any additional family members so as to reduce the number of people in the clinic. Repeat scripts & referrals: Repeat scripts or referrals for regular medications or referrals that have been previously done at NEST, can be requested via HotDoc - https://repeats.hotdoc.com.au/#/clinic/282/prescription-request Please note the term and conditions. NEST Nursing & Immunisation: Our Practice Nurses are available for consultations and immunisations as normal. It is especially important at this time to keep up to date with scheduled vaccinations. We ask that patients remain in the car when they arrive for their vaccination and we will advise you when the nurse is ready to see you. That way, you are reducing the amount of time spent in the clinic. **For safety reasons, patients must remain at the clinic for 15 minutes after any vaccination. Should you wish to wait outside, this is fine but you must be visible to NEST staff. NEST Psychology & Psychiatry This is an incredibly challenging time for everyone and can lead to an increase of anxiety and depression. Our team of psychiatrists and psychologists are still here for you and encourage you to continue your therapy with them (either face to face or via telehealth) as now more than ever it is important to keep a check on our mental health. Some of our clinicians have moved solely to a telehealth system and our reception team will be in touch with you to advise you of this. Otherwise please continue to attend your appointments in the clinic. And if you have a loved one in need of additional support at this time, please call us to discuss appointments with our team. Nutrition & Dietetics: NEST’s Family and Paediatric Dietitian and Lactation Consultant, Nicole Bando, is still available for face to face consultations, home consultations or telehealth consultations. Nicole has some great ideas about how to keep up healthy eating habits for you and the kids whilst staying at home. Please call NEST reception to make appointments with Nicole. Physiotherapy: NEST’s Physiotherapist Genia Barmakov, is still available for face to face consultations. However, if you are self-isolating at home, Genia can offer telehealth consultations too! Rest assured there is still plenty that can be achieved over the phone or a video chat with your physio. Genia is an expert musculoskeletal and pelvic floor physio and can offer you advice, exercises and products to men and women through this time. If you are pregnant or post-natal and want or need guidance on how to manage or return to exercise, pelvic instability and/or pain, pelvic floor concerns pre or post-natally, please call reception to make an appointment with Genia. Lactation consultations: Nicole Bando, APD and Lactation Consultant and Dr Maryallan Girolami are available for face to face consultations, home consultations or telehealth consultations. Please reach out if you need help with breast feeding or bottle feeding your baby. Being isolated from friends and family with a small baby can be very hard but rest assured that Nicole is here for you if you need guidance or assistance with any feeding problem or query. Paediatrics: During this time, many normal routines have dramatically changed, including regular check ups with Maternal & Child Health Nurses. This can often be stressful and anxiety provoking for many parents. NEST's, Dr Danielle Freeman is a neonatal paediatrician treating bubs (from 0 to 12 months of age) and mums to be (prenatally) to treat and look after many different concerns/conditions. Dani is available for face to face and telehealth appointments (when preferred or needed) at NEST Elsternwick. COVID-19 INFORMATION: If you have any further queries please contact the Coronavirus Hotline number (provided by nurse-on-call) - 1800 675 398. And refer to the latest information at - https://www.dhhs.vic.gov.au/coronavirus The COVID testing centres are located here: https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/getting-tested A reminder, that: • All patients are screened thoroughly prior to entering the clinic, • All patients attending the practice must wear a mask (children under the age of 12 years old are exempt from this), • The consultation rooms are regularly cleaned in between patients and the premises are cleaned regularly with hospital grade disinfectant, • Hand Sanitiser is readily available and • PPE (Protective personal equipment) is worn by all clinicians when required Lastly, we are experiencing higher than normal call volumes, email requests and general enquiries so please be patient as we attend to your queries and requests as soon as we can.