Health Visitors etc?

[cleaningtwenty]

I’ve noticed that many people have involvement with a HV for, well, years. We saw the HV twice in our home (once just after the birth and again a few months later) and apart from when we took DD to be weighed at the drs (up to us how often) where she was often available if we wanted her for any reason, that was it. After her two years check up, we’ve never seen another.

When people say here they will ask the health visitor about something to do with an older child, do they see them because they have younger children and so are available or is this a service just in some boroughs?

Do you have a number for them? You can just call them whenever you want to ask a question.

No, no number. When we stopped doing the weighing thing, which just sort of petered out because there were no problems with DD’s feeding, weight, etc. we had no contact until s letter to say when the two year check up was, and at that meeting they said we didn’t need to see them again.

We had the same experience as you, we were told we could call them whever we needed but that outside of those appointments there wouldnt be any scheduled intervention.

We did get a call about 2 weeks after DD went to A&E once, because they had been alerted of an a&e visit and just wanted to check she was ok now.

After her two years check up, we’ve never seen another.

we never even got a two year check up, just a letter to say please sign here to agree your child is developing normally and return in envelope provided, which I never did because no envelope was ever provided.

We saw health visitors when we went for weight checks, thats all.

They just weighed and recorded.

My DS started losing weight at 3 months, and carried on losing for many weeks, but even when I pointed that out, they still just nodded and smiled and weighed and recorded.

Oh how strange my DS is 10 months so also only had two visits after birth but he has been in hospital and they called after that to make sure we were ok and I've always had a number for them if I need to ask anything.

I wonder if it a different system in different areas.

we have something called flying start here (wales) which means that you see the health visitor more and have access to groups and support based on your postcode. Because I live in what is co soldered to be a deprived area (s.wales valleys) I will see the hv alot more than some people. You can decline the service tho if you don't want it

Health visitors have certain core contacts they have to do. There is an antenatal (usually a visit for your first but a phone call for subsequent babies), a new birth visit which has to be done between on day 14 and then a 6-8 week visit (used to be a 12 week visit but public health England stupidly changed it).

There is then a 9-12 month developmental review which will be done by a nursery nurse or health visitor and a 2&1/2 developmental review again usually with a nursery nurse.

The new born visits are pretty standard across England I think but pretty sure the other vary.