PHOENIX — A lot of families are avoiding the doctor during the pandemic, including the pediatrician. With the drop, health care professionals have become concerned about the health and safety of children who aren't being seen.
Dr. Sally Goza, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics, says she's seen a 30 to 40 percent drop in the number of children visiting the doctor.
“We know parents are scared to come into the pediatrician office, they’ve been told to stay home," Dr. Goza said. "And you can imagine most people probably think the doctor’s office is not the safest place to go when trying to avoid an illness.”
Dr. Goza says the consequences of not going in could be far worse.
“Nobody has their eyes on the children and what’s going on with them," Dr. Goza said. "We know that children need their vaccines. We do not need a vaccine-preventable disease like whooping cough or measles to come in during this pandemic.”
And that’s just one of several risks Dr. Goza is tracking.
“We had already seen an increase in the rates of suicide among our teenagers and we really don’t want to see it rise anymore because of this crisis," she said.
Some families of newborns may also be putting their babies at risk.
“We are having reports of parents wanting to leave hospitals after 16 hours after babies are born, which can be very scary for us as pediatricians," Dr. Goza said. "Because so much happens in those first few days after babies are born.”
To maintain checkups, Dr. Goza says pediatric offices are taking extra precautions.
“A lot of practices are seeing well visits in the morning and sick visits in the afternoon," she said. "Everyone in the office is wearing masks and gloves if they need to.”
Additionally, you may be able to stay in your car instead of the waiting room. Rigid disinfecting practices are happening and there are virtual visit options. These are all innovative efforts hospitals are implementing to protect children.
“If their child gets sick and they don’t seem to get better or they seem to be getting worse, they need to talk to their pediatrician," Dr. Goza said.
Experts say keeping up with the health of children should be top priority. Additional tips from pediatric experts can be found here.
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