The Newborn Baby Check

The newborn baby check is often the first encounter a General Practitioner (GP) has with an infant and their family. It is an excellent opportunity to review the journey the family has taken antenatally, at the time of delivery and the weeks that have followed. It is also a time to detect and identify conditions that can be managed in their early stages. If untreated, some conditions can result in major morbidity. In this chapter we will look at what makes up a newborn baby check and important considerations to think about when undertaking this assessment. The examination is also performed in a systematic way to maximise the chance of detecting any abnormalities.