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 Click here for our Spring/Summer 2010 Newsletter



Ticks and Your Child

It’s warming up in Ithaca! And that means everyone is out enjoying the warm weather and sunshine – including ticks!

  • • There are lots of different types of ticks. Ticks burrow their mouthparts under the skin and become firmly attached in order to feed on blood. Wood ticks and dog ticks are brown, lentil-sized or larger, and may swell to the size of a chickpea when engorged. Deer ticks are black, very tiny (sesame seed size or smaller), and may swell to the size of a lentil when engorged. Only deer ticks can transmit Lyme disease, although in order to do so, they must remain attached and feed for more than 36 hours.
  • • If a tick is crawling on your child, can be brushed off or pulled off this skin easily, it has not been attached and cannot have transmitted any disease. To remove an embedded tick, take the smallest tweezers you can find and slide the tips under the head, right against the skin, and grab the mouthparts (most of which will be under the skin). Pull very gently but steadily upward and outward. Be patient! It’s more important to get the mouth parts out, so don’t pull on the head or body (that just squeezes more “tick juice” into your child!). Don’t try to smother the tick with Vaseline (they breathe only once a day!) or burn it off – you’ll only damage the skin, not the tick. If a deer tick has been attached and engorged for more than 36 hours, call your health care provider within 24 hours for further instructions. Save the tick in case your health care provider wants to inspect the tick.
  • • For more information about ticks, Lyme, and identification: http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/communicable/lyme/

Summer Camp Programs, an Important Message for Parents

As summer approaches, many families are enrolling their children in summer camp programs. Our team at Northeast Pediatrics is committed to providing your children and teens with the highest level of care and service available. Many camps and summer programs require health forms. In order to serve you best, we ask that you follow these guidelines when requesting Camp Health Forms to be signed by our pediatricians.

✓ If your child has not had a Well Visit within the last year, we cannot vouch for their state of health. We will need to set up an appointment for a well visit before completing forms.

✓ Read the entire form. Fill in every blank for which you have information. That should include the history questions. If the form states that the history is to be filled out by the physician, plan on answering the questions and your child’s physician will review it.

✓ If your child has complicated medical problems, complete the form and if we have questions when the physician reviews it, we will most likely be able to handle those questions with a phone call.

✓ For the safety of your child, we do not sign for “just in case” medications to be dispensed at camp. If your child takes medication on a daily basis that we have prescribed, we will be happy to provide any appropriate medication forms required.

✓ Please plan ahead when submitting camp forms as we need 7-10 days to sign and return then to you. Signed forms can be picked up at our office in the reception area. There is a $10.00 fee per child for camp forms. Tip: If you bring 3 Camp Forms for one child on one day, the fee is still just $10.00!

Thank You for your attention to these guidelines. Together, we can ensure a healthy summer!

 

WELCOME!

Welcome to Northeast Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, where we specialize in caring for children.

Since 1964, we have been providing our patients with the quality service they deserve and expect. We provide pediatric medical care for children from birth to twelve years of age, and adolescent care from twelve to twenty-one years of age. In addition to seeing patients in our offices, we care for newborns and children who need hospital care at Cayuga Medical Center at Ithaca.

All of our physicians are certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and are experienced in pediatric and adolescent medicine.

  • • Northeast Pediatrics is available. In Tompkins County, a Pediatrician is available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, 365 days a year. Our office hours include weekends and holidays.
  • • Northeast Pediatrics is accessible. Now with two locations in Ithaca, we can provide care that is closer to home.
  • • Northeast Pediatrics is convenient. We always offer same day sick appointments as well as full in-office laboratory services.
  • • Northeast Pediatrics is excellence. In addition to all of our physician being Board Certified, we have physicians with specialties in Infectious Disease and Pediatric Endocrinology. We also work very closely with our Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistant who play a significant role in providing comprehensive pediatric care and lactation counseling for nursing mothers.
  • • Northeast Pediatrics is caring. If your child becomes ill outside of our business hours, a pediatrician is always available to answer your questions and provide you with competent advice. During our business hours, there is always a trained Registered Nurse available to attend to your questions and needs.