Meet the Doctors For parents who are expecting or thinking of transferring care to our practice, we set aside a special time each month for them to come, see our office, and meet our providers and ask us questions about our services, policies, and views on medical care. This is typically the 1st Tuesday of each month at noontime. Please schedule an appointment and let us know if you have any special questions in mind.
Health Checks from Birth to Age 21 We perform periodic well-child checks based on the American Academy
of Pediatrics recommended Periodic Schedule designed to track the development
of each child and adolescent.
Sick Child Office Visit If your child is ill and needs to be seen, please call our office as soon as possible so that we may schedule your child for the earliest available appointment. Also, read about our Express Service for non-chronic illness.
Sports and Camp Physicals These visits are sometimes requested separately by parents because of insurance reasons but are best done in conjunction with the annual health checks where the physical is combined with the recommended vaccination, lab screening and review of ongoing health issues. The forms are generally considered valid for a year.
Pre-Op Physicals These are recommended to be done within one month of the procedure. A recent annual or sports physical may suffice if done within the past three months and the patient has not had any serious illness (e.g. asthma attack or pneumonia) in that time frame. Children with special needs may need clearance from other specialists or may need to be seen within one to two weeks before the procedure.
ImmunizationsThe Schedules lists the ages (birth through adulthood) for when each vaccine or series of shots is to be given. If you or your child has missed any shots, contact us to schedule an appointment and to get back on track.
School and Behavioral Issues We provide consultations on behavioral concerns that affect infants to adolescents. For those who may have concerns that their child may have ADD/ADHD, anxiety, depression or mood disorders, we ask that you fill out an initial questionnaire and a follow-up form for at least one or two teachers and allow us time to review them. Sometimes, we would recommend that psychoeducational evaluation be performed first by a school or private psychologist.
Acute and Chronic Illnesses In an effort to make us more efficiently serve you, we offer an “express visit” for patients with simple complaints like sore throat, earaches and other upper respiratory illness, vomiting and diarrhea. Those with multiple or vague complaints or chronic illnesses, such as recurrent abdominal pains, headaches, asthma and ADHD are given consultation appointments that need longer time and more thorough assessments.
Tests, Procedures and Screening |
Newborn Metabolic Screen is a panel of tests to check for serious illnesses that, if not recognized early, may cause significant morbidity or mortality; it requires a few drops of blood on a state-provided specimen paper and drawn from the heels. Neonatal Bilirubin is a heelstick specimen drawn to check blood level of bilirubin, a chemical that causes jaundice. Hemoglobin is a finger or heelstick specimen to check for anemia. Complete Blood Count is used to check for anemia, infection or inflammation and bleeding; our in-house CBC machine requires a small blood specimen using a fingerstick. Lipid Panel checks for blood level of total cholesterol, HDL or good cholesterol, LDL or bad cholesterol, and Triglycerides; our in-house device requires only a small amount of blood from a fingerstick. We do this test once at the 11 to 14 year health check visit and 5 years after. If the Dyslipidemia Risk Assessment reveals risk factors anytime from 2 years of age, we do the Lipid Panel preferably fasting during that visit. If your insurance company does not cover this test, we can do a regular blood draw and send it to the preferred lab. OAE or Otoacoustic Emission Test is a hearing test using an earplug-like device with a microphone that measures the cochlea’s response to sound (an otoacoustic emission is a weak echo sound made by the ear soon after it hears). ASQ or Ages and Stages Questionnaire is a standardized tool to screen for developmental delays in 5 different areas of development: communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving and personal-social. It is one of the most reliable, valid and sensitive developmental tests recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. MCHAT or Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers is a standardized tool to screen for autism usually performed at the 18 and 24 month health checks. Both MCHAT and ASQ are usually filled by the parents or guardians during the visit (can also be answered on downloaded forms or through the Patient Portal). The tests are then scored by the staff, tallied and added into flowsheets in the patient’s electronic chart. These tests, in conjunction with the clinical judgment of the clinician and the specific concerns of the parents/guardians, help us identify which patients need to be referred to therapists and specialists and may benefit from early intervention. TB or Tuberculosis Risk Assessment is a questionnaire used to screen those who may need to be tested with PPD or Purified Protein Derivative, a skin test to detect if a patient has possible antibody reaction to the tuberculosis organism. Lead Poisoning Risk Assessment is a questionnaire used to screen those who may need to have their Blood Level Level (BLL) checked before, in between, and after the recommended 12 and 24 month health check visits. Spirometry is a test of pulmonary function and measures how much air the lungs can hold and how well the respiratory system is able to move air into and out of the lungs. We use it in the office to diagnose and monitor lung problems like asthma. Tympanometry is an examination used to test the condition of the middle ear and mobility of the eardrum. It is useful in demonstrating the presence of fluid and level of pressure on the eardrum and helps determine the cause of any hearing loss. Pure Tone Audiometry is test of hearing that measures the patient’s ability to hear at different frequencies and determine the degree of hearing loss. Minor Procedures that we perform are simple laceration repair, removal of splinters, and foreign objects from nose and ears, treatment of warts and ear piercing. |
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| Dawson Pediatrics, PC 300 Dawson Commons Circle, Suite 320 Dawsonville, GA 30534 Phone (706) 216-2771 Fax (706) 216-2944 info@dawsonpediatrics.com
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