The Family Child and Youth Health Service provides a range of primary health care services to meet the needs of:

• children (5 - 12 years of age) and their families

• young people (12 - 24 years of age)
  

Family and Child Health Nurses also screen infants (0 - 5 years) and provide information to parents in the interests of early intervention and positive health and learning outcomes. This service is provided from local Child Health Centres.

Parent/guardian consent is required for children in schools to be seen by the Family and Child Health Nurse. Services to schools include:

• school screening: monitoring school children 5 - 12 years of age, by Family and Child Health Nurses, in line with National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines. Vision and hearing are routinely screened in Prep. A Nurse Health Assessment is provided in the Prep year following parent/guardian request via a Parent Questionnaire distributed through schools. Vision only is routinely screened in Grade 6

• referrals: Family and Child Health Nurses will respond to requests for assessments of individual primary-school age children on a range of health issues. Requests may come from parents/guardians, teachers, student support workers or students themselves

• health promotion activities in primary schools: Family and Child Health Nurses have a small allocation of time for direct involvement in health promotion activities. The Nurses may provide material resources and/or advice about other health personnel relevant to specific activities

• Headlice: Family and Child Health Nurses provide education sessions for parents, children and teachers on the prevention of headlice infestation and treatment procedures. Nurses are also available for consultation with individual families where there is a perceived "resistant" infestation of headlice

• Youth Health Teams: work with young people 12 - 24 years to foster their capacity to manage and maintain better health. The Youth Health Teams draw on health promotion and community development principles, working specifically with young people

• enuresis service: (Wetaway) to support families with children (5 years and over) who are experiencing persistent bedwetting