Yes, say Lister Hill Center Scholar Lorraine Klerman and her co-author David Reynolds. However, by counseling the mothers of their patients, primary care pediatricians can play a significant role in preventing the birth of such infants. This is due to an increasing awareness that, for several conditions, the mother's health or illnesses may have a negative effect on the developing fetus before the mother even realizes that she is pregnant. And for some problems which may not affect fetal well-being until later in pregnancy, the prenatal period may not be long enough to remove or lessen them.
Most mothers visit the pediatrician often during the first few years of a child's life.
While providing advice about how to care for the child who is being seen, the pediatrician can also suggest how to prepare for the child who has not yet been conceived. For example, the pediatrician can advise that becoming pregnant again too soon may prevent the mother from giving her child all the attention that he or she needs. This can lead to a discussion of the need for family planning so that unwanted or mistimed births can be prevented and so that the woman may be in good physical health before she conceives again. Similarly, questions about domestic violence, asked in the context of the child being seen, may assist the woman in planning for another pregnancy. Training pediatricians in these new techniques should be included in residency and continuing education programs.