Coming Up

Coming up in the next few weeks:  discussions about child safety including helmet use, internet, concussions, and more! 

Also, I will be discussing a topic often very sensitive to some people, but a tremendously important health issue in children that has reached epidemic proportions: childhood obesity.

If you have any questions about these topics, please ask. Your questions will help guide my discussions.


A sincere "thank you" for taking time out of your day to read my publications,
"The Kid Doc"

Reliable health information websites for your kids

I just wanted to share some websites that will give you RELIABLE information about a vast array of child health topics.  The links are on the right side of the page.


Please feel free to "FRIEND REQUEST" me on my personal facebook page. Search "Richard Turner" or "TheKidDoc" (no spaces). Professional page does not have "friend request", but feel free to leave comments, questions, and suggestions on this blog or on my professional facebook page about child health topics. 


Other comments can be left on my personal facebook page.

--The American Academy of Pediatrics:     http://www.aap.org

A wealth of information for parents and health professionals/pediatricians alike. Everything from common childhood illnesses to healthy eating habits to questions about typical child development & milestones.

This is a GREAT site! Check it out.

--Vaccinate Your Baby:     http://vacinateyourbaby.org

I know there are some parents out there that are reluctant, to say the least, about vaccinations. This website answers many of your questions with RELIABLE, quality, controlled research-backed information about vaccinations. It dispels the myths and provides the scientifically proven truth about vaccinating your baby.

If you're still reluctant about the science, then take note of this fact: the VAST majority of pediatricians, and other professionals that work with children in a variety of capacities, vaccinate their own children. To me, this is the single best endorsement of vaccinations.

--Bright Futures:      http://www.brightfutures.org

"Bright Futures is a national health promotion initiative dedicated to the principle that every child deserves to be healthy and that optimal health involves a trusting relationship between the health professional, the child, the family, and the community as partners in health practice." This is directly off their website main page. 

--Centers for Disease Control:      http://www.cdc.gov

One of the best resources online for infectious disease topics as well as great information for childhood disease as well as a multitude of other health topics - for kids and adults.

--Richard Allen Turner, M.D.:     https://www.facebook.com/pages/Richard-Allen-Turner-MD/226385550711052?sk=wall
And yes, this is a shameless plug for my Facebook Professional page...  :)  

This is my promise to you: any health/medical information on my professional page (or on this blog) will simply be reliable, up-to-date, evidence-based information without the media hype, sensationalism, or  speculation.

I will also post editorials regarding a wide variety of health related topics, such as healthcare legislation, healthcare delivery, the primary care physician setting as a medical home, and any others that may arise.

FLORIDA LAW GUNS DOWN 

CHILDREN AND PEDIATRICIANS

This Florida law, shoved down the throats of Floridian parents and pediatricians by the NRA, has to be one of the most anti-child, potentially dangerous laws to ever threaten the health of Florida's children ever placed on the law books. Pediatricians and other child healthcare providers can be fined, have their licenses suspended and even IMPRISONED for ASKING about gun safety. 

Not only is it dangerous, but it is clearly a violation of First Amendment free speech rights and federal law. The Federal Government has adopted AS FEDERAL LAW, the American Academy of Pediatrics "Bright Futures" as the  standard of care for pediatricians giving anticipatory guidance at well child visits. Included in "Bright Futures" is a discussion of gun safety during well child exams as part of anticipatory guidance.  As pediatricians we give such guidance to parents on a wide range of topics including expectant development, puberty, behavior, and yes, SAFETY. At these well child exams, on of the safety issues we talk about is gun SAFETY.

Marion P. Hammer
NRA Past President

"We take our children to pediatricians for medical care, not moral judgment, not privacy intrusions," says NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer. "This bill is about helping families who are complaining about being questioned about gun ownership, and the growing anti-gun political agenda being carried out in examination rooms by doctors and staffs."

 Let me reiterate: we talk about gun SAFETY. We do JUDGE those who own weapons. If one chooses to own firearms, fine. As pediatric healthcare providers, it is our goal and responsibility to discuss safety issues with parents. Part of that responsibility is insuring that gun ownership is SAFE and RESPONSIBLE ... not non-existent. We remind parents of the safe storage of guns if they own them. We are not trying to tell people they should not own guns. We do not advocate the removal of guns from homes. We simply want parents to understand how to safely store their guns and ammunition should they choose to own them. We do not violate ANY Second Amendment right. We are not going into their homes and taking their guns. We are not advocating for laws prohibiting gun ownership. We are simply ASKING, TALKING about gun SAFETY.

This law is NOT about helping families or children. It is about the NRA's political agenda of allowing any weapon at any time, anywhere, without exception. It is about SILENCING anyone who THEY FEEL threatens that agenda. They have fought every type of gun legislation ever introduced.  They don't care about families. They don't care about children. They care about one thing: their agenda. Period.

I assure you that when a child comes into emergency rooms with gunshot wounds, dead or seriously injured, this MOST CERTAINLY becomes a child MEDICAL CARE issue. One to two unintentional firearm deaths EVERY WEEK in this country and the NRA has the audacity to ignore this as a medical issue?? 

Loaded guns are unsafely stored in millions of homes within children's reach. Devastating laws such as this Florida abomination insures that child deaths will be on the rise.

Shame on the NRA and their political agenda. Shame on Florida Governor Rick Scott for signing into law such abysmal, anti-child legislation!!

DELAWARE EX-PEDIATRICIAN CONVICTED OF CHILD SEX ABUSE

Dr. Earl Bradley
Arrest Photo

What's worse than a child molester? A child molester who is a pediatrician.  

Dr. Earl Bradley, a Delaware pediatrician....well, EX-pediatrician, was convicted earlier this week in Sussex Superior Court on all 24 counts of rape, sexual assault, and sexual exploitation involving over 100 girls he treated in his practice. Most of his victims were toddlers....unable to tell anyone of the abuse. There were even 16 hours of video of the abuse recorded by the perpetrator himself!! Now, his lawyers are filing motions to have this evidence thrown out!!

One of the big questions that has been raised is, "where were the parents and why did they leave their little kids alone with this man?" Let's be very careful in criticizing the parents. This is EXTREMELY rare for a pediatrician to engage in such heinous, despicable, and grotesque acts with their patients. We are all inclined to trust our doctor's and our children's doctors.

Parents place a great deal of trust in their child's pediatrician, giving them medications/drugs that they are prescribed, trusting their medical advise, etc. This trust is the very foundation of ANY doctor-patient relationship. So in that respect it is understandable that parents would leave their small child alone with the pediatrician.

As a practice, pediatricians ask parents to leave the room during well child exams once they are somewhere between 10 and 12, depending on the office. This is done so pediatricians can talk to kids and reassure them that they can talk to their physician confidentially.

There are certainly appropriate times for a physician to request speaking to a child alone and performing a genital exam alone, but this is in older, verbal pre-teens and teens. But even in this age group, as a practice, I do the entire physical exam during a well child exam in the presence of the parent THEN I ask the child (10-17 years old) if he/she would prefer to do the private part of the exam with their parent in the room or if they want them to leave. They almost always want parents to leave at that age, but I give them the option. In the case of females, I offer the girl to have one of my female colleagues perform the private part of the exam.

Except under extraordinarily unusual circumstances, a physician requesting to be ALONE with a child too young to talk or a non-verbal child due to medical/psychiatric issues of any age is a HUGE red flag. Genital exams are a necessary part of the well-child exam. This part of the exam should be very brief in all but a few circumstances and, in my mind, should never be performed alone by a physician in any non-verbal child.

A genital exam should only be done at well-child exams, or if a specific concern raised by the parent or patient of a genital issue. Genital exams performed at visits other than a well-child/sports physical exam or when concerns are specifically raised by the parent/patient for a problem of the genital area should raise concern/red flags that something is amiss.

There are very important medical/developmental reasons for genital exams at all well-child exams. However, in my opinion, there really is no medical reason for a physician to request or perform such an exam ALONE on an infant, toddler, small child, or non-verbal child of any age. If, as a parent, you get that feeling that something isn't right, ASK. That is absolutely your right. ASK...."Why do you need to do that test?" "What's the reason for this?" "Why are you doing that?" Even if nothing is wrong, ask questions...that is why we are there as pediatricians. It's your right and responsibility to ask questions. It is our responsibility to answer them with the most up to date, accurate information available in a caring, compassionate manner.

This "man" (I use the term VERY loosely) has done unimaginable, possibly irreparable, harm to these children and their families. He has violated a sacred, yes I mean sacred, trust. How can these children and parents trust another pediatrician after this horrific man?? How can the people of their community trust ANY pediatrician?? How can many of you who have followed this story ever really trust you own child's pediatrician??

Fortunately, it looks like this predator will be in prison for a very long time....HOPEFULLY. The only fear I have is somehow the sick lawyers find a way to get the videos deemed inadmissible on some stupid technicality and get a new trial. BUT, even if that happens and nightmarish acquittal should result (which I SERIOUSLY doubt and hope), he will never practice medicine again.

State Medical Boards do not need a conviction to revoke his license and their burden of proof is not "beyond a reasonable doubt." The mere fact that these videos exist whether admissible in a CRIMINAL court, they are plenty to insure that he NEVER practices medicine again for the rest of his miserable life. He will NEVER be able to abuse another child under the guise of ......PEDIATRICIAN.

Dr. Richard Allen Turner
Springfield,  Ohio Pediatrician