As Chief Home Officer, you’re in charge of family excellence. This means that everyone in your family gets the best of everything you can give them, and this includes healthcare. Yet, the conventional pediatric healthcare journey in Puerto Rico can often feel like a daunting maze. Long waits for a pediatrician or specialist, crowded emergency rooms, and the unease of sharing space with sick children during regular checkups are all too familiar. Maintaining communication with pediatricians for follow-up care or securing the necessary medical clearances for school adds to the challenge.

Moving your family to Puerto Rico is a significant adventure filled with exciting possibilities and unique cultural experiences. However, alongside the excitement, moving means that expat moms and busy professionals will find a series of challenges. Language barriers, transportation issues, and healthcare system differences, especially when seeking quality medical care for their children. In this comprehensive guide, we'll help you navigate these challenges and find the pediatric care clinic in Puerto Rico who understands your family's needs in this new setting.

There are little things more frustrating in Puerto Rico than trying to make a medical appointment. Primary care doctors, specialists, and more have become harder to find, and many are not accepting new patients. This panorama has also become a reality when it comes to pediatric care. 

A study conducted in 2011 to analyze the pediatricians' profile in Puerto Rico revealed that the median age of pediatricians in Puerto Rico was 54 years old (compared with 42 and 43 years old in the mainland US). Ten years later, the Puerto Rico Pediatrics Society (SPP by its acronym in Spanish) showed that 49% of pediatricians on the island are over 60 years old, that the median age for retirement is 67, and that 28% of the 331 pediatricians who completed the survey have a general pediatric practice in two municipalities or more. 

In addition, health insurance companies have not increased their premiums in 25 years, affecting pediatricians and the number of medical students who decide to major in general pediatrics, favoring subspecialties and threatening the stability of pediatrics in Puerto Rico. The plot thickens when you add hospitals in the mix and the lack of urgent and around-the-clock care on the island.

We’ve talked to a lot of parents, and these are their top five pediatric health challenges (and how Pravan Kids addresses them):

In Puerto Rico, kids experience respiratory infections across the year. However, after school starts and cooler seasons approach, these infections can become prominent. This is why we developed a tailored guide for busy parents to identify and handle “sick kid season.”

At Pravan Clinic, we are continually evolving to serve you better, and it is with immense joy that we announce the newest addition to our family: the Pravan Kids Neonatal Program.

Embarking on the journey of parenthood is a truly exciting time, filled with anticipation and joy, but it can also bring along mixed emotions, especially for first-time parents. To ensure a smooth transition into this new phase, we have curated the Pravan Kids Neonatal Program as an add-on to our existing Pravan Kids membership. This comprehensive program aims to provide you and your newborn with expert care and guidance from the start, all in a comfortable and supportive environment.

The first five years of a child's life mark a period of rapid brain development, shaping their cognitive abilities and future success. During this critical phase, over a million neural connections form daily, with the environment and experiences playing a pivotal role in this intricate process. Nutrition is also one of the key factors influencing brain development. In this blog, we will delve into the impact of nutrition on a child's brain development, the challenges of providing balanced meals for young children, and the role of healthy snacks in ensuring optimal cognitive growth.

What is the Saharan Dust?

Summer, the season of fun, back to school, and, in Puerto Rico, Saharan Dust. Saharan dust is a cloud of dry, hot air that comes from Africa. This definition makes it seems pretty harmless. However, these clouds come filled with bacteria, viruses, fungi, pollen, and other substances that can be harmful to children and adults alike, especially if they are allergic or asthmatic. 

How to minimize its harmful effects?

Back to school. Three words that bring diverse emotions in parents. On one hand, it brings the stress of having everything ready; on the other hand, it gives the kids something to do. After the books are labeled, the laptops are up to date, and all the materials are ready to go, there’s something else parents must keep in mind: backpack weight. An aspect that is often overlooked, but that can affect children in different ways. 

Carrying an improperly loaded or heavy backpack can lead to various health issues that could have long-term effects on our children's well-being. In this blog, we will explore the importance of choosing the right weight for kids' backpacks and how to make sure they are using them correctly.

The well-child visit is a must on your to-do list

As a parent, you probably have checklists of things that need to be handled in your household. These might include changing the car oil, shopping for groceries, and scheduling playdates. One important item that can be overlooked when you have a hectic schedule but needs to be included in your to-do list is well-child visits. 

Parenting is a huge responsibility, and you should have a medical professional as your partner in the journey to ensure your kids hit their milestones, are protected from certain illnesses, and more. With this in mind, your Pravan Kids membership was designed to provide this support by tracking your child’s developmental milestones by providing and helping you schedule well-child visits.

In 2011 the Perfil del Pediatra study revealed that the median age of pediatricians in Puerto Rico was 54 years old (compared with 42 and 43 years old in the mainland US). Ten years later, the Puerto Rico Pediatrics Society (SPP by its acronym in Spanish) showed that 49% of pediatricians on the island are over 60 years old, that the median age for retirement is 67, and that 28% of the 331 pediatricians who completed the survey have a general pediatric practice in two municipalities or more. 

In a previous blog, we discussed the importance of choosing the right pediatrician. However, making that choice is more complicated than it seems, and even after you make it, you might still feel that there are things that can improve in your children’s care when it comes to your pediatrician.

At Pravan Clinic, we understand the importance of providing comprehensive and quality healthcare for children. That's why we're proud to announce our newest membership, Pravan Kids. This pediatric membership offers a unique approach to pediatric care by providing concierge services to children from newborns to 18 years old. So if you have kids, nieces or nephews, keep on reading to learn how it works.

When it comes to kids, things can happen in a blink of an eye. They might be peacefully playing at one moment, and in the next, you’re running to the emergency room after a fall or because there’s a sudden fever. All parents want to avoid the emergency room, especially in Puerto Rico. Asides from the risk of catching a bug in the hospital, the long waits can be a challenge, especially with small children.

Any parent knows that the pediatrician is one of the most important doctors in their lives. Is a doctor-patient relationship that goes beyond knowledge; it needs trust to flourish since it will last until the child is 21 years old. Before settling for a pediatrician, one would suggest research, making a list, visiting their offices, and learning about their approaches. 

However, doing that research has become extremely difficult in Puerto Rico. In part due to the brain/doctor drain of the past two decades and the retirement of prominent doctors. The limited availability of these specialists has resulted in longer waiting lists, overcrowded pediatric offices, and decreased doctor-patient time per visit.