What the new three year old check involves

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This November, the Federal Government has introduced the Medicare Healthy Kids Check, an opportunity for parents of children between their third and fourth birthday to have a comprehensive assessment and check up by their GP.

This is more than just a chat and a couple of questions.

The consultation can take up to an hour, often involving the practice nurse as well as the GP. This doesn't mean that parents concerned about any aspect of their child's development or health should wait till they're three. Their child can have a full assessment by the GP no matter what their age. The idea behind the three year old check comes from the Thriving Kids initiative, which aims to provide early detection and early action should a child aged eight and under need support and help. From 1 January 2028, parents will no longer be able to qualify their child for the NDIS if the child has what are defined as low to moderate support needs for diagnoses such as autism spectrum disorder. Those supports will be delivered through Thriving Kids by whichever state or territory the family lives in.

The hope of the three year old check is to be able to detect vulnerable kids or those who'd benefit from supports and interventions before problems become more serious or entrenched. So it's a preventive program.

What to expect in the check-up

This is more than just a chat and a couple of questions. Parents will be asked about any concerns they have, along with specific questions about the child's development, behaviour and social skills. It's really an attempt to get to know the child and their strengths as well as any vulnerabilities. In more than one in five children, at least one vulnerability may be found, but that doesn't mean it's serious. If support or an intervention is necessary, the practice will endeavour to find the right service for the child's needs. For the majority who are found to be fine, the check up has the advantage that the GP will have a lot of data on how they were faring at age three in case anything changes.

If you want to dig deeper, here's a paper in the AJGP which advises GPs on what the process could look like.