This is an example of a Self Weigh Station located at Child Health Centres all over Australia. Primary care for kids is delivered quite differently here than in the US, basically amounting to fewer Well Child Checks. That, in conjunction with most parents curiosity about their child’s weight, leads to a need for such stations… And they are very well used. I was at this centre for the morning, and I noticed at least 2-3 families per hour coming in to get a weight and then be on their way. Families are also given growth charts in their child’s Personal Health Record at the time of birth and parents are taught how to plot weight, so you can see more plot points for growth. A unique idea that seems to actually work.

I went on a few home visits with a child health nurse today to check in with some new mums (one had triplets!). This was the setting of our second visit, in an area called Mt. Glorious.

This is the Ellen Barron Family Center in Brisbane where I’ve spent some of my time during my elective here. It’s a facility where parents with young children can go to stay if they’re having difficulties with things like feeding, settling/sleeping, or discipline. It’s quite an impressive facility with such a unique spectrum of services that doesn’t really have an equivalent (that I’ve heard of) in the US.