KSHB 41: Doctors urge parents to not skip children's checkups during pandemic

By Jordan Betts

Bowen Bradshaw spent his first two months of life in neonatal intensive care, because of a heart condition.

Bowen was released from the hospital last week, but now the little boy will embark on a seemingly endless journey of doctor's visits, which started Tuesday with a checkup and a series of shots at Children's Mercy Broadway Clinics.

Even after the lengthy hospital stay, his mom Amanda was nervous to bring him to the doctor's office because of COVID-19 concerns.

Pediatricians report similar nervousness among parents across the Kansas City area and the country.

"Everything from our checkups, even for children who are calling in for same-day appointments, we had about a 65% decrease in our clinic visits right off the bat," Children's Mercy Division Director for General Pediatrics Dr. George Phillips said.

"We think we understand why many people weren't coming in," Phillips said. "Everyone was trying to social distance, people were trying to defer things they might not need taken care of right now, but that really made us worry about the important parts of preventive care."

Amanda said she was glad to see the hospital protecting patients and families with signs encouraging social distancing and the wearing of face masks.

See the full story via KSHB 41

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