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Every child deserves the best possible start in life. Evidence demonstrates the period from pre-birth to three years is a vital period of development. It lays the foundations for a child’s future and has life-long impacts on health, education, job opportunities, social inclusion and wellbeing.
The importance of play for a child’s development is irrefutable. Playgroups provide a safe environment for children of similar ages to play and develop prior to starting school.
Influenza (commonly known as the flu) is caused by a highly contagious virus spread mainly through coughing and sneezing. An annual flu vaccination is the most effective way to prevent flu outbreaks.
Whooping cough (pertussis) is a highly contagious respiratory infection which causes a severe cough and can be particularly dangerous to babies under a year old. Vaccination is the best way to reduce the risk of whooping cough.
About 2 per cent of children are estimated to have an intellectual disability. The cause of the condition is unknown in at least 50 per cent of cases.
A severe neurodevelopmental disorder mostly affecting girls.
The science that interprets the way nutrients and other substances in food affect maintenance, growth, reproduction, health and disease.
Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is the most important cause of acquired cardiovascular disease in children and young adults. Virtually non-existent in most of Australia, it still predominantly affects Aboriginal communities.
Vaccination is the injection of an inactivated bacteria or virus into the body. This simulated infection allows an individual's immune system to develop an adaptive immunity for protection against that type of illness. When a sufficiently large percentage of a population has been vaccinated, this results in herd immunity.
Leukaemia, also spelled leukemia, is a cancer that develops in the bone marrow and results in abnormal white blood cells. It is the most common cancer in children, accounting for almost a third of all childhood & teen cancers.