Mother Care for Children

All mothers always have special feelings and attention for their children – of course! They carried their child nine months in their womb and did so much sacrifice on the growth and development of their children. What more could a mother wish for with their children than for their children to grow up healthy and be away from physical and emotional sickness.

It is very important that mothers must learn ways on how to keep their children healthy. A healthy child would not only mean that they are free from sickness. Health in children would include developing and achieving their optimum potentials since a child is growing and its body, mind and personality are developing all the time.

Mother’s play a vital role in keeping their children healthy by sustaining their physical needs, giving them sufficient care, emotional support and providing them time for learning. They need to think about their child’s health all the time and not only when the time their child is ill or sick. This means that all facets of preventive care and medical treatment must be taken into consideration.

Accident prevention requires constant alertness for children. Good health for children is achieved by giving them a loving home, both encouraging and compassionate. Mothers should give them the appropriate diet and according to their age and health needs. They should choose a doctor and arrange regular check and immunization for their children.

Below are few good tips for young mothers on how to care for their children:

    * CHOOSING A DOCTOR. Choose a doctor, who is local and is easy to see.

    * Consult a doctor whenever you are worried about the health of your child.

    * HOSPITAL ADMITTANCE. Child will be examined by a specialist who will decide for the treatment of the child’s illness. The following are list of the common specialist.

   1. PEDIATRICIAN: specialist in the case of children

   2. AUDIOLOGIST:  concerned about hearing problems.

   3. DERMATOLOGIST: specialist on skin diseases.

   4. OPTHALMMOLOGIST: concerned with eye defects.

   5. ORTHOPAEDIC: concerned with bones and joints.

    * EATING AND DRINKING. If a child is vomiting or has a diarrhea, the child should be given fluid or watery drinks in small amounts.

    * FEVER. A normal body temperature ranges between 97-99 degrees Fahrenheit or 36-37 degrees Celsius when taken by an oral or rectal thermometer. Mother’s should realize that once the temperature rises beyond the normal range this would constitute fever and fever is a sign of the presence of infection. It is important to consult your doctor to determine the cause of infection and so that necessary medication should be taken. The following are list of thermometers that are suitable for children.

   1. Digital thermometers: these are thermometer’s suitable for children because they are easy to use, and hard to break, they are battery operated, and they give quick results.

   2. DIGITAL EAR THERMOMETER: they are also easy to use, it has a disposable tip that is inserted into the child’s ear and the screen show’s the child’s temperature.

   3. STRIP THERMOMETER: the simplest and safest thermometer to be use for children, but the reading is less accurate compare with the other thermometers.

   4. MERCURY THERMOMETER: these thermometers are no longer advice to be use for children since it is made of glass and mercury.

    * GIVING MEDICINES. Common problem of mother is when their child is sick and when giving medicine to their children that had been prescribed by their doctor. Mostly, medicines that are given to children are liquid in the form so that they are easy to swallow and can easily be disguised as a small drink.

    * CHILDREN ADMITTED IN HOSPITAL:  children are unfamiliar to the surrounding, and therefore, they must be provided with all the comfort and care, they need. It will be helpful if mothers would bring their child’s favorite toys and books so that in some ways child’s anxiety will be alleviated.