Programs
Expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check
The expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check will give parents the option of talking to a medical professional about the health and wellbeing of children aged three and a half to five years.
What is the expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check?
Expansion of the Medicare Healthy Kids Check
Implementation of the Check
Who will benefit from the expanded Healthy Kids Check?
Who is involved?
More information
What is the expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check?
The expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check provides a new opportunity for parents to have a structured conversation with a health professional to review their child’s health and development. It is part of a suite of activities and services supported by the Australian Government promoting optimal child health, development and wellbeing. The check is also an opportunity for parents to identify any concerns they might have and discuss them with their GP, practice nurse or Aboriginal health worker.The current Medicare Healthy Kids Check, which commenced in July 2008, checks physical health, general wellbeing and development in children over the age of three and under the age of five years, to ensure they are healthy, fit and ready for school.
The 2011 Budget committed an additional $11 million over five years (to 2015-16) to expand the current check to include development and social and emotional wellbeing, and lowers the target age for the Medicare Healthy Kids Check from four to three and a half years. Many parents have concerns about how their child is doing; these concerns can be addressed as part of the check, and reassurance and/or advice provided as appropriate. And from time to time, and following discussion with parents, the health professional might refer the child for further assessment.
The current Medicare Healthy Kids Check is voluntary, and this will not change with the expansion of the check.
The Medicare Healthy Kids Check is one of several checks that are available, with all states and territories also offering child health checks.
Expansion of the Medicare Healthy Kids Check
A multidisciplinary Expert Reference Group, chaired by Professor Frank Oberklaid, developed a number of recommendations about expanding the current check and these were reported to the Minister; these included:- that the child's physical health, development, and social and emotional wellbeing should all be part of the Check;
- that the check should be linked to other support programs and with other sources of relevant data to inform child health programs and policy;
- that a training resource be developed to support general practitioners, practice nurses and Aboriginal health workers who will be undertaking the check; and
- that a mapping exercise be undertaken to identify locally available services for children and their parents.
Implementation of the check
The first part of a staged implementation project to expand the Medicare Healthy Kids Check, taking into account advice from the Expert Reference Group and stakeholder roundtable, commenced earlier this year. The Australian Medicare Local Alliance has been contracted to undertake this project.The staged implementation will include formal review points to ensure that the expanded check achieves what was intended. There will also be ongoing consultation with medical practitioners, practice nurses, Aboriginal health workers and parents.
Medicare Locals have been identified as the vehicle through which government can integrate and strengthen the primary health care system to better respond to emerging local health issues, and achieve better health outcomes for local communities. Accordingly, eight Medicare Locals will be involved in the first stage of implementation. This first phase will also involve the development of an orientation package for GPs and other health professionals to ensure those delivering the check have the tools and resources to do their work.
An evaluation that considers the views of health professionals and parents, as well as experts in children’s health and development, will be undertaken to help inform the final design of the check and the training materials.
Subject to the outcomes of the first phase of implementation over 2013, it is anticipated that the expanded Medicare Healthy Kids Check will be rolled out nationally in 2014.
