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ALERTS: 6/14/10

E-prescribing is Here!
Mountain View Pediatrics is now registered with Sure Scripts, so prescriptions can been sent electronically to many pharmacies in the area avoiding the need for paper and decreasing the risk of medical errors. Check with your pharmacy and see if they participate or go to surescripts.com and check our area to get a full listing.

Infections
Even though the Easter Bunny has come to visit already, cold and flu season can hang on for a few more months, so don't be surprised if your child continues to have the sniffles on and off.

Strep Throat
We've seen lots and lots of strep throat this year, so don't hesitate to let us look at your child if he’s having fever and sore throat. Stomachache and headache are also common symptoms of strep.

Whooping Cough
The community continues to have sporadic cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, and as you likely know the university recently had a mumps outbreak. Those are vaccine preventable illnesses, so make sure your child is up to date on his or her shots.

Hand Foot Mouth
Spring is the time we see hand foot mouth appear as well. HFM is caused by the coxsackie virus that creates ulcers in the mouth and a rash on the hands and feet. The biggest risk of that illness is dehydration as many children won't eat or drink because of discomfort. It's highly contagious as well, and a rite of passage for childhood. If your child hasn't had it, they will.

West Nile Virus
The other bug we see in the springtime are mosquitoes. To prevent West Nile Virus, all children 2 months old and up should wear bug spray when outside.

H1N1
If you are concerned that your child has been exposed to H1N1, call our office to discuss the issue.

CLICK HERE to view Oct. 29, 2009 message on H1N1 from the State of NY Depatement of Health.

For more information on H1N1, go to:
CDC Website
A webcast also available on the CDC’s website for more information.
Clinton County Health Department
Call (518) 565-4490 for a recorded health message available 24 hours a day.

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Additional Email Address
We’ve added a new email address now, nurse@mvpediatrics.com. This is for you to request information that might normally take a phone call. Checking lab results and routine questions can be directed towards a nurse at our office via email.

Using Email Effectively
Email is a relatively new form of communication between doctors and patients. The goal of course is to provide timely advice and increase access to your child’s personal physician or pediatric office. That said, sometimes it doesn’t work well, due to SPAM, physician time off, or technical problems.

To get the most out of email, we recommend the following:

Usually email is a fast, personal way to communicate, but it isn’t perfect. Over the past few years, we think the majority of problems can be reduced with those guidelines.