Our services

ND Assessment Clinic

The assessment focuses on the entire child and their strengths and weaknesses to provide a developmental profile. As well as a full medical examination, the following may be assessed: Unfortunately, we are not able to offer intervention through our service.

– learning abilities and potential (cognition)

– social and communication skills

– speech and language development

– daily living and functional skills

– behaviour concerns relating to ADHD and Autism spectrum disorder

– skills for motor planning and coordination

We aim to work closely with the child’s local team so that everyone involved in your child’s care has the same level of understanding of their strengths and weaknesses so can work jointly to follow through the recommendations made following the assessment. This will include liaison with professionals already involved in supporting your child and may involve outreach visits to the child’s home and school.

Children and young people up until the age of 18 years with known intellectual disability, sensory impairment or complex medical conditions including syndromes, genetic anomalies, stable epilepsy and cerebral malformations where the medical condition creates diagnostic uncertainty or where the local team require additional assessments to understand the child’s needs.

We see children and young people with complex neurodevelopmental presentations, including those where a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder is being considered. We also see children where there are concerns about language disorders, behavioural and motor coordination problems and specific learning difficulties.

ADHD Review Clinic

ADHD Review Clinic is aim at children and young people that have received a diagnosis of ADHD.

We are a team of professionals who work with children and young people suffering from mental illnesses and complex needs.

The benefit of the ADHD Review clinic model is its ability to provide targeted treatment for children with co-morbid conditions. Children with ADHD are at greater risk for anxiety disorders, sleep disorders, disruptive behaviour disorders, mood disorders, and specific learning disabilities. Although many children with ADHD and co-morbid conditions respond favourably to stimulant medication, some children may require a more comprehensive treatment plan involving behavioural or cognitive behavioural therapy and/or the adjunctive use of a nonstimulant medication.

Child Health Surveillance Clinic

Child health surveillance clinics are clinics for children and young people who have complex health needs to have scheduled and regular paediatrician visits to screen and assess them for any underlying health condition from infancy through adolescence.

Why would a child need health surveillance?

Prevention: Parents can benefit with nutritional advice and safety tips for children at home and at school, to avoid injuries and malnutrition.

Growth and development can be tracked: parents can track their child’s growth from one visit to the next and any developmental problems, behavioural problems, or learning problems can be detected from an early stage.

Concerns can be raised: regular visits to a paediatrician allow parents to ask questions about their child and raise any concerns they might have about their behaviour, sleeping and eating patterns, or communication skills.

Team approach: regular visits create a bond between the parent, child, and paediatrician. It helps children to develop optimal mental, physical, and social health.

Medication Review Clinic

Our Medication Review Clinic provide a comprehensive review of a child or young person`s medication, taking into consideration all aspects of their health. The review is structured in a way where clinicians, child or young person and parent/carer work as equal partners to understand the balance between the benefits and risks of and alternatives of taking medicines. The shared decision-making conversation being led by the child or young person`s individual needs, preferences and circumstances. There is also a review of problematic polypharmacy.

Problematic polypharmacy is where, for an individual taking multiple medicines, the potential for harm outweighs any benefits from the medicines and/or they do not fully understand the implications of the medication regime they are taking. This includes:

• medicines that are no longer clinically indicated or appropriate or optimised for that person
• combination of multiple medicines has the potential to, or is actually causing harm to the person
• practicalities of using the medicines become unmanageable or are causing harm or distress.

Medication reviews have benefits to people taking multiple medicines:

• improved experience and quality of care through being involved in the decision-making process and having a better understanding of the medicines they take
• less risk of harm from medicines (e.g. adverse drug events, side effects, hospitalisation or addiction)
• better value for local health systems (e.g. reduced medicine waste).

Community General Clinic

Our Community Paediatric Service see children and young people who have been referred from their GP or other healthcare professional with developmental, behavioural, medical or educational needs. The service consists of a team of paediatric doctors with expertise in hearing loss, disorders of development (for example autism), disability (for example cerebral palsy), and problems with behaviour. They hold clinics in a variety of settings, including schools, with an emphasis on continuity of care, and have strong skills working with multiple agencies, particularly with education and social care.

The Community Paediatric Service has statutory responsibilities in relation to statements for Special Educational Needs (working closely with the Local Education Authorities) and in relation to Safeguarding children, Looked after Children and fostering and adoption (working closely with Children’s Social Care Departments).

Community paediatric services are available to children and young people where there are concerns about a child’s health, development or educational progress.

Community Connectors

This is a pilot project funded by the Welsh Government. The aim of the pilot is to support families/carers of children aged 0-7 who are on the waiting list for a Neurodevelopment assessment. Signposting to services and support that can be accessed without a formal diagnosis. Deliver connection sessions specific to your local area. Support peer group development.

Sleep Clinic

Our Sleep Clinic provides diagnosis, support and treatment to children and young people suffering from a variety of sleep conditions.

Child Protection and Safeguarding

Child protection plays a role in everything we do as child health professionals, and is about protecting individual children identified as suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm as a result of abuse or neglect.

Safeguarding means: protecting children from abuse and maltreatment. preventing harm to children’s health or development. ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care. taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.

The role of our clinicians is to protect children and young people from harm, and help improve their wellbeing, all our paediatricians and paediatricians in training have the competencies to recognise child maltreatment, opportunities to improve childhood wellbeing and to take effective action as appropriate to their role.