March Newsletter 2023

A Note from Help Me Grow Skagit's Physician Champion

Dr. Francie Chalmers

Welcome to the Help Me Grow Skagit March Newsletter.

We are continuing our Spring series of CME Learning Sessions this month on Thursday March 16th (7-8 am) with a presentation by The Weitzman Institute on the power of play. I encourage you to join us to learn together about the importance of PLAY in child development and behavioral/mental health. 

The session after this, from 7-8 am on Thursday April 20th,we will hear from Seattle a local pediatrician expert, Dr. Dimitri Christakis, all about the Impact of Technology on Child Development. 

Registration and additional details for both these Learning Sessions can be found below. 

Resource links related to both the Prescription to Play and the Impact of Technology on Child Development Learning Sessions can be found in this newsletter.

As HMG Skagit’s “Physician Champion” please remember that I am available to help facilitate connections between your practice and community support services. I can be reached anytime with questions and feedback at fchalmers.md@gmail.com.

Register HERE

Next up in the Child Development Series:

April 20th: Impact of Technology on Child Development

Presented by Dr. Dimitri A. Christakis, Director of the Child for Child Health, Behavior and Development, Seattle Children's Research Institute

7am - 8am Register HERE

May 18th: Pediatric Gait

Presented by Jenna Lisenby, DPT, Valley Kids Therapy

7am - 8am Register HERE

June 8th: Evening Reception and Culminating Event

Save the Date! Registration coming soon

Helpful Resources

RX4Play: Prescription for Play promotes learning through play by supplying free DUPLO® brick kits and educational materials to pediatric health care providers to deliver to 18-36-month-old patients during routine well-child visits.  

Articles:

• The Power of Play: A Pediatric Role in Enhancing Development in Young Children | Pediatrics | American Academy of Pediatrics (aap.org)

• For a deeper dive into what play is all about, read this: Frontiers | Accessing the Inaccessible: Redefining Play as a Spectrum (frontiersin.org) 

• Sit Down and Play: A Preventive Primary Care-Based Program To Enhance Parenting Practices - PMC (nih.gov)

Recorded webinars/slide decks: 

•  “Prescription for Play: What Science Says About the Importance of Play for Children and Families” 
• PBS - Why Doctors are Increasingly Prescribing Nature: Special correspondent Cat Wise reports from Oakland on the medical evidence that indicates escaping modern urban life, even temporarily, can yield health dividends. 
• Building parents' understanding of play to nurture infant and toddler mental health: co-produced by the Mental Health Professionals' Network (MHPN) To increase clinicians’ understanding of how to utilize play interventions with parents, infants and toddlers to promote connection, communication and overall mental health. Facilitated by Vicki Mansfield (Emerging Minds Practice Development Officer) 
• The Neuroscience of Play: Dr. Stuart Brown, founder of the National Institute for Play, tells us what nature wants us to know about play by tracing its evolution-from its beginnings in a quirky and creative universe to the contributions of play to full and successful lives. 
• Prescription for Play: Developmental Behavioral Pediatrician, Francis Dimalanta, MD to find out the superpower of Play! 

Resources for Parents/Caregivers

• The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University offers an online resource on play and executive functioning with specific activities suggested for parents and children
• Articles for Families on Play from the National Association for the Education of Young Children
• The Power of Play with Age Specific Ideas for Playful Learning  
• Video: learn more about how play can foster children's resilience to hardship, and how the complex interactions involved when children play help build their brains. 
• Active for Life: Resources for raising kids who love to move 

The Help Me Grow Skagit website is a great place to find support for Skagit families. Please check out the Healthcare Providers page to learn about the Help Me Grow Skagit Family Resource Navigator, how to make a referral, connect with our Physician Champion, read past newsletters, and get information about upcoming CME events. If you have an idea of content to add to the page, we'd love to hear from you!

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