May 14, 2024

Dear Amazing Centennial Valley Pediatrics Patients and Families,

We hope this email finds you all healthy and well!

School is almost over for many of you; for some of our college kids, it may already be over. That means it's time for vacations, summer camps, maybe summer school or work, but hopefully there will be a lot of fun and relaxation time, too!

It will be time for summer camp soon! Does your child need a camp physical? Call us to schedule soon!

Is your child's physical current (in the last 12 months)? Do they just need camp paperwork completed? It can be emailed to us, or brought in to our office, but we require 5 days to return these to you, so don't wait until the last minute!

Does your child need a sports physical? We have plenty of openings now, but as the end of summer rolls around, those appointments will be harder to come by, so call today to schedule!

Summer is on the way!

There's lots of fun to be had, but some summer safety tips are important to review:

1. Keep watch to prevent drowning.

• Summer water safety should be top of mind for parents, regardless if you have a pool in your backyard, are visiting a community pool, or going to the lake. It only takes seconds for drowning to happen.
• Actively supervise children at all times when in or around water--assign a "watcher", someone who's only job is to watch children in the water. They should not be on their phone or reading, or chatting with other parents.
• Make sure you have the right equipment to keep home pools safe--fencing and self latching gates are imperative.
• Children should wear life jackets when on the water.
• And remember that many drownings happen in locations that are not where you usually visit, like a friend's home or on vacation. Make sure your children do not have access to these bodies of water.
• More pool safety tips

2. Check for car safety.

• Make sure your child's car seat/booster seat is properly fitted and appropriate for their age before hitting the road for a family vacation. Take car seats when you travel by airplane, or rent them at your destination. Children under 13 yrs old should always ride in the backseat.
• Never leave a child unattended in a car. The temperature inside a car can rise quickly, even on a relatively mild day. Hot cars kill! Establish a routine to check the car before locking and walking away.
• Car seat recommendations

3. Protect skin from the sun.

• Sunburns hurt, and over time, can increase the risk of skin cancer. Children have thinner skin than adults, and they will burn more quickly.
• Apply sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher whenever your child is going to be outdoors in the sun. Reapply every 2 hours or immediately after your child has been in the water, or has been sweating heavily. Apply at least 30 minutes before sun exposure, to give the sunscreen time to start protecting the skin. And remember, you should still wear sunscreen on cloudy days--yes, you can get a sunburn when it's cloudy!
• Try to avoid outdoor activities during peak sunshine hours, from 10am-2pm, or have plenty of shade handy. Consider dressing children in sun protective clothing during these hours if you can't stay in the shade.
• Babies under 6 months old should ideally not use sunscreen--they should be kept in the shade, and wear protective clothing. However, if shade or adequate clothing are not available, you can apply a minimal amount of sunscreen to small areas of the body, including the face. For babies and young children, a mineral sunscreen is recommended over a chemical one.

4. Avoid bug bites.

• As the weather warms up, bugs come out in full force--mosquito and tick bites are itchy and annoying, but they can also transmit serious illness.
• To avoid bug bites, apply insect repellant before spending time outdoors, avoid using heavily scented soaps or lotions, and cover arms and legs as much as possible. Try to avoid outdoor activities during peak insect activity (dusk for mosquitos).
• When you need, or just want, to be outdoors when/where these insects might be present, use insect repellant containing DEET. DEET is the most effective insect repellant, and has been shown to be safe for children 2 months old and up.
• When choosing an insect repellant, look at the percentage DEET. The concentration of DEET affects the amount of the time that the product repels insects. For example, 10% DEET provides protection for about 2 hours; 30% DEET protects for about 5 hours. Products with 10% DEET are just fine for a brief evening outside playing. Choose something with higher concentration if you will be in insect territory for longer periods or time--camping trip, long hike in the woods, etc.

5. Ride bikes the smart way.

Apart from automobiles, bicycles are related to more childhood injuries than any other consumer product. Wearing a helmet is the first rule to preventing serious bicycle injuries in kids. Make sure bikes and helmets fit kids properly and follow smart rider rules. Children should also use a helmet when riding scooters, skateboards, rollerblades, etc.

A reminder:

Please, PLEASE, check and DOUBLE CHECK the reminder that you get for your appointments. The office location is in this reminder. Remember, we have two locations. If you come to the wrong location for your appointment, you will likely not be able to be seen and will have to reschedule. We cannot just squeeze you in to a schedule you are not on, and you will be much too late if you try to go to the other office. We truly regret turning anyone away, but it is not fair to the rest of the scheduled patients to see you late and make everyone else late as well. We know how frustrating this would be for you, so please, PLEASE be sure you know which office your appointment is scheduled in. 

Also, please arrive 10-15 minutes early for your appointments--there is almost always paperwork that needs to be filled out, which can take quite a bit of time (for example, teenager check-ups have multiple forms the teen needs to fill out, as well as what the parent fills out).

We want to give you the full time allotted for your appointment, but if you arrive "on time", then have to fill out paperwork, make your payments, go to the bathroom, etc, that will significantly cut into the time we get to spend with you and your child--and we don't want that!

Thank you!!

To all the moms, and those who act as moms, we hope you had a lovely Mother's Day!

We love and appreciate our patients and families! Stay safe and healthy!

Love, Centennial Valley Pediatrics Providers and Staff/