Definition
Faltering growth is a term that refers to a child whose growth is not tracking as expected for their age and sex. This may be that the child is loosing weight or that they are not gaining weight, depending on their age. This may be due to a transient issue like an infection or a more sinister underlying cause eg cancer or neglect.
Clinician choice
Community midwives provide support for babies up to 10 days of age. This care is then taken over by a Health Visitor who are specialist community nurses or midwives who support families that have children aged 0-5 years. Health Visitors are trained to help with many issues including feeding and minor ailments.
Safeguarding
This is particularly important in children who present with faltering growth as this may be the only sign of abuse eg neglect. If you have any concerns around possible safeguarding concerns, please select yes as this will book the child in with a GP on the same day. If there is no safeguarding concern identified at this appointment, this is still a very useful appointment for the child as the GP can assess and manage their faltering growth.