Behavior and Development

In Developmental Pediatrics, we do lengthy assessments of children with possible developmental delay or suspected autism. A lot of it involves a box of toys, seeing how they play with toys, how they interact with us and their caregiver. I enjoy playing with toys. I also found it incredibly interesting how every child with autism is very different from other children with autism, yet there are core features they share in common. There are also a lot of questionnaires and scoring forms, but these are used as guides rather than as strict diagnostic tools.

Well baby nursery

I'm on call in the well nursery. Newborns are so sweet, and I've seen a few interesting diagnoses, from Down's Syndrome to polydactyly, and loads of hyperbilirubinemia. Unfortunately, birth has a lot of paperwork, and some pediatricians want to medicalize the whole process. I end up doing blood tests and ordering imaging when I really think that observation is more appropriate. Spiralling costs of healthcare, anyone? There's such a fear of being sued for missing something.