In the last quarter century there’s been an explosion in our understanding of child development. Unfortunately, all that new knowledge hasn’t translated into improved child health. The fact is, far too many of our children are not doing well — not at all well.
I never dreamed that after 35 years in medicine I would now find so many children in worse shape than when I started.
Three years ago, I was asked to set up a social pediatrics program at the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). Social pediatrics recognizes that poverty places children at high risk for current and future health problems.
And so we send our medical residents out on public transit to make home visits and provide care at local clinics in parts of the city — both suburban and downtown — where parents struggle and children are disadvantaged.
The experience is transformative... read more http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1048901--the-kids-aren-t-all-right