NEWBORN CARE

Whether Dr Coetzee is present for the birth of your baby or meets your new bundle of joy once you are discharged from the hospital, your first few appointments with your paediatrician will be focused on ensuring the health of your newborn baby as well as helping you as mom and dad adjust to parenthood. Dr Coetzee will assess your little one and make sure that his or her transition into the world is going well. As some babies need extra help adjusting to life outside the womb, Dr Coetzee will make sure there are no areas which may require special attention.

Your paediatrician will complete a comprehensive physical exam of him or her, head-to-tiny-toes. Temperature, heart rate, eye health, breathing rate, skin colour, Apgar scoring, as well as measuring birth weight and growth will be checked during your newborn's appointments. While moms pass antibodies through the umbilical cord during pregnancy, the immunity your newborn baby has is temporary. Dr Coetzee will discuss the vaccines needed as well as the standard immunisation schedule.

Aside from ensuring a well-baby, these appointments will also be focused on easing parental concerns and questions including feeding and feeding-related problems, growth monitoring and developmental screening. Understanding that this adjustment may cause severe parental anxiety, Dr Phillip Coetzee strives to help parents and baby adjust after birth by instilling confidence in parents through offering guidance through breastfeeding or lactation problems and other parenting practices, dispelling myths and providing knowledge on newborn care. In addition, as motherhood is demanding, the psychological wellbeing of the new mom will be prioritised, and your paediatrician will look for signs for post-partum depression.