Paediatric wait-times could be burdening the education system

<h2><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Long wait times for paediatric care are impacting the education system&comma; say healthcare professionals and educators&period;  <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Lynette Evans&comma; manager of Nelson Bays resource teachers of learning and behaviour &lpar;RTLB&rpar; says paediatric wait times at the local hospital are a contributing factor to stand-downs&comma; exclusions and truancy&period; The lack of medical input means teachers lack guidance on navigating learning and behaviour needs&comma; says Evans&period; <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;schoolnews&period;co&period;nz&sol;latest-print-issue&sol;" target&equals;"&lowbar;blank" rel&equals;"noopener"><b>Read the latest print edition of <em>School News<&sol;em> online HERE&period;<&sol;b><&sol;a><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">The range of unmet needs include foetal alcohol syndrome and cognitive delay&period; Other issues like anxiety may present due to underlying medical issues&period; <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Without diagnosis or access to essential funding and support&comma; the education system becomes strained&comma; with mental health and support services at schools already overwhelmed&period; <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Evans says she sees children on the paediatric wait list suffer long-term consequences on their learning and wellbeing&comma; which ripples out into the wider community&period; <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">&&num;8220&semi;Often it&&num;8217&semi;s too late when we get them into paediatrics and they&&num;8217&semi;re 12&comma; 13&comma; 14&period; It&&num;8217&semi;s a long way down the track by then&comma; and I think that&&num;8217&semi;s the shame of it&period;<&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<blockquote>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">&&num;8220&semi;We need to be able to access these services&comma; especially for our priority children&comma; who are at risk of being able to stay engaged in education&period;&&num;8221&semi;<&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<&sol;blockquote>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Nelson Hospital is one of many facilities across the country where long wait times are impacting the community&comma; and medical professionals working at the hospital say children are some of the worst affected&period; There&comma; some children wait 18 months to see a paediatrician for developmental and behavioural concerns&period;<&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">Dr Katie Ben&comma; president of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists&comma; noted that a five-year-old who is facing issues at school will &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;have their first two years at school&comma; which is possibly some of the most formative&comma; on a waiting list to see a paediatrician&period; <&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><span data-contrast&equals;"auto">&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Paediatricians commonly say their patients don’t die&comma; they just get expelled&period;”<&sol;span><span data-ccp-props&equals;"&lbrace;&rcub;"> <&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;