Table 2.
Frequency of activities provided in typical consultations with young children, aged 0–5 years
| No. of responses | Proportion of consultations, n (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Never to sometimes (≤50%) | Often to mostly (≥51%) |
||
| Feeding advice and support | |||
| Encouraging continuation of breastfeeding in breastfeeding mothers | 87 | 12 (13.8) | 75 (86.2) |
| Offering water as the main drink for children ≥12 months | 87 | 12 (13.8) | 75 (86.2) |
| When to introduce solids to infants | 87 | 14 (16.1) | 73 (83.9) |
| How to introduce solids to infants | 87 | 13 (14.9) | 74 (85.1) |
| Parents eating meals with their children | 87 | 14 (16.1) | 73 (83.9) |
| Limiting intake of sweetened drinks | 87 | 12 (13.8) | 75 (86.2) |
| Increasing fruit and vegetable intake | 87 | 27 (31.0) | 60 (69.0) |
| Limiting high sugar and/or high fat foods | 86 | 28 (32.6) | 58 (67.4) |
| Provide correct formula preparation advice to parents who are formula feeding their infants | 87 | 47 (54.0) | 40 (46.0) |
| Behaviour advice and support | |||
| Sleep and settling techniques for infants | 88 | 13 (14.8) | 75 (85.2) |
| Limiting TV or other screen-based activities | 88 | 30 (34.1) | 58 (65.9) |
| Limiting TV and electronic media use to ≤1 h/daily for children aged 2–5 years | 86 | 33 (38.4) | 53 (61.6) |
| Increasing active play for young children | 87 | 36 (41.4) | 51 (58.6) |
| Growth charts and measurements | |||
| Measure height and weight of children aged ≤2 years | 87 | 7 (8.0) | 80 (92.0) |
| Plot height and weight of children aged ≤2 years on growth chart | 87 | 9 (10.3) | 78 (89.7) |
| Use growth or BMI chart to identify infant or child at risk of overweight or obesity | 84 | 37 (44.0) | 47 (56.0) |
| Measure height and weight of children aged ≥2 years | 87 | 40 (46.0) | 47 (54.0) |
| Calculate BMI of children aged ≥2 years and plot on BMI percentile chart | 85 | 49 (57.6) | 36 (42.4) |
| Referral to other services | |||
| Referral to an allied health professional | 33a | 22 (66.6) | 11 (33.3) |
| Referral to dietitian | 87 | 75 (86.2) | 12 (13.8) |
| Referral to weight management clinic | 87 | 80 (92.0) | 7 (8.0) |
BMI body mass index.
a Some respondents using the paper survey did not indicate how often they referred to allied health professionals. 51 respondents reported referring to allied health, with the most common referral being to dietitians (24), speech pathologists (20), physiotherapists (15), and occupational therapists (14), as well as feeding clinics, dental services, psychologists and lactation consultants