Your Health Visitor will contact you when you are pregnant and during the first few years of your child's life. During these contacts, the Health Visitor will work with you to assess your child's health and development and to support you as required in meeting your child's needs.
Health Visitors also provide advice on many health topics related to your baby/child and family such as making sure your baby is safe; child health and development; immunisation; signposting you to other services; parenting skills; sleeping and crying; family routines; minor ailments your baby/child may experience; breastfeeding, infant feeding weaning and nutrition; smoking cessation; contraception.
What can you expect from the Health Visiting Service?
How often will your Health Visitor contact you?
You can expect regular contact from your Health Visitor from the time you are pregnant until your child starts school. Your Health Visitor will offer to undertake a development and wellbeing review of your child's health at key times to ensure that your child is attaining the expected developmental milestones for his/her age.
You can also ask to see your Health Visitor at any time outwith these contact times for advice, information and support. Following the birth of your baby, your health visitor will provide you with a Child Health Record Book (known as the Red Book). The Red Book is an important record for you and your Health Visitor to record information in relation to your child's health. You should use this record each time you have contact with your Health Visitor. If you have any other medical appointments including your child's immunisations you should take this record with you to provide other professionals with all relevant information. Your Red Book will also contain key contact details and information about your child's development, growth and immunisations.
You can also ask to see your Health Visitor at any time outwith these contact times for advice, information and support. Following the birth of your baby, your health visitor will provide you with a Child Health Record Book (known as the Red Book). The Red Book is an important record for you and your Health Visitor to record information in relation to your child's health. You should use this record each time you have contact with your Health Visitor. If you have any other medical appointments including your child's immunisations you should take this record with you to provide other professionals with all relevant information. Your Red Book will also contain key contact details and information about your child's development, growth and immunisations.
Information Sharing
All information recorded by your Health Visitor is confidential and will only be discussed with you or other health professionals involved in the care of your child or with nursery colleagues (with parental permission) to provide ongoing support if required.
If you or your child's safety or welfare is at any perceived risk then relevant information can be shared legally with other agencies without your consent.
If you or your child's safety or welfare is at any perceived risk then relevant information can be shared legally with other agencies without your consent.
Further Information
Please feel free to ask your Health Visitor any questions that you have when you meet. Health Visitors spend a lot of their working day on home visits however all teams have answerphones and will aim to get back to you as soon as they can if you leave a message.
Working Hours: Monday - Friday 9.00am - 5.00pm (excluding Public Holidays)
For Out of Hours please contact NHS 24 - on 111
Health Visitor Administration for your area can be contacted on the telephone number below:
Angus Area - 01307 475074
Dundee Area - 01382 647768
Perth & Kinross Area - 01738 564234
Working Hours: Monday - Friday 9.00am - 5.00pm (excluding Public Holidays)
For Out of Hours please contact NHS 24 - on 111
Health Visitor Administration for your area can be contacted on the telephone number below:
Angus Area - 01307 475074
Dundee Area - 01382 647768
Perth & Kinross Area - 01738 564234
