Controlling the development of children during a pandemic

Even though children's health services are disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indonesian Doctors Association (IDAI) advises parents not to delay immunization and still control children's growth and development at home. What do you need to pay attention to?

The basic needs of children's growth and development during a pandemic must be met

IDAI provides input to the government for order new normal The COVID-19 pandemic must be adapted to the basic needs of child development. Disrupted access to children's health services will increase the risk of disease or malnutrition that could have been prevented.

"Concept new normal expected to be arranged according to the basic needs of child development. Because optimal child development will determine the quality of the next generation, "wrote IDAI in a press statement.

During the pandemic period, IDAI emphasized that monitoring of children's growth and development should be carried out according to the recommendations of the Ministry of Health. This is called the Early Intervention of Child Development and Development Deviation (SDIDTK) which includes:

1. Early stimulation: to stimulate the toddler's brain so that the development of the ability to move, speak, language, socialization and independence take place optimally according to the child's age.
2. Early detection of child development: inspection activities to detect any disturbances in the development of children under five. Early detection will make handling easier.
3. Early intervention: corrective action so that the child's growth and development return to normal or at least the disturbance does not get worse.
4. Early referral: if a toddler needs to be referred to a specialist, then the referral should also be done as early as possible according to the indication.

Like it or not, several children's health services were disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic. IDAI reminds parents to keep paying attention to their child's growth, development and immunization.

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How to control children's growth while at home

Whether or not a child's growth can be assessed from measurements of height, weight, and head circumference.

Citing the IDAI website, children's growth at the age of 0–24 months is the fastest growing period. During this time, there is growth in the brain and other very important organs.

Undetected growth disorders can have an impact on the quality of life of the child in the future. Therefore, as long as children's health services are closed during the pandemic, parents are advised to control the growth and development of their children at home.

The way to know the normal growth of a one-year-old baby is to calculate the weight that reaches three times the birth weight. Then, the body length increases by 50 percent from the birth length and the head circumference increases about 10 cm from the time of birth.

Every child grows at different rates so it is necessary to take measurements regularly to make sure there are no interruptions in their growth.

IDAI recommends that periodic measurements be carried out with the following time lags.

• Measurement of infant growth from 0-12 months of age is carried out every month.
• Growth measurements from 1–3 years of age were carried out every 3 months.
• Measurement of growth from ages 3-6 years is carried out every 6 months.
• Measurements are carried out every 1 year in the following years.

The stages of child development during this pandemic can be controlled by parents at home. Parents can take measurements of height and weight with sewing meters as well as body weight with a scale at home. Make sure the measurements are correct and then write them down.

In addition to physical growth, parents must also pay attention to the motor development, language skills and cognitive abilities of children by observing and recording them. In case of delay, consult a pediatrician.