Use of a screening tool to help Island parents assess their children’s development is being expanded, says Kathy Jones, Health PEI’s director of Public Health Programs.
“The Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) is a patented, evidence-based screening tool that parents complete at home, based on observations of their children’s abilities,” Jones said. “The response from parents and public health nurses so far has been positive, so we are expanding use of the tool to other age groups that benefit from Public Health Nursing services.”
The ASQ looks at areas of development such as communication, fine and gross motor skills, and problem solving. After reviewing best practices to update Public Health Nursing programs, Health PEI began using the ASQ tool with four year olds in June 2011 and with 18 month olds in December. In the spring of 2012, Public Health Nursing will look at adding additional Ages and Stages Questionnaire screening.
Before ASQ, public health nurses evaluated children’s development by asking them to complete tasks during their scheduled child health clinic appointment. Jones explained that the clinic environment sometimes made children uneasy, preventing them from performing to their full ability.
“Encouraging parents to complete the questionnaire with their child at home benefits parents and children,” said Diane Boswell, clinical specialist for Public Health Nursing. “ASQ can be completed regardless of how a child is feeling or acting on a particular day, and the screen gives the parent an awareness of different stages of child development and shows them that their observations and concerns are important.”
The public health nurse discusses the completed questionnaire with parents at their child’s scheduled child health clinic appointment. If there are any concerns, the public health nurse will discuss the best options for next steps. This could include additional information for parents, activities to do at home, or a referral to other health care professionals. Child health clinics also include assessments of vision, hearing, growth and nutrition as well as immunization according to the provincial immunization schedule.
For more information on how public health nurses work to promote preschool children’s health, visit www.healthpei.ca/publichealth.