New campaign for healthier children

The city’s hospitals are counting a new advertising campaign to keep children healthier by encouraging families to visit the doctor regularly, before the kids get sick and need emergency room care.
The New York City Department of Health and Hospitals Corporation’s (HHC) new advertisements, which will run through November, pose the question “Why wait to visit the emergency room, when there is a doctor in the family?”
HHC operates 28 child health centers staffed with doctors citywide, with four of them located in Jackson Heights, Astoria, Woodside, and Corona.
The City Council has provided HHC with $1.09 million for the child health incentive.
“The funding we provided will help keep HHC’s child health clinics up-to-date, both inside and out, as well as reach out to the people who will benefit from these services most,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.
“Encouraging New Yorkers to take their kids to the doctor before they are sick is essential to maintaining the happiness and health of our city’s youngest, and HHC’s new campaign is helping to make this happen,” she said.
The clinics all feature multilingual health care professionals. The clinics can treat common illnesses, as well as provide immunizations, physicals, health screenings and check ups.
“This year marks the 100th anniversary of the city’s Child Health Clinics. The clinics have cared for generations of children regardless of their immigration status or ability to pay and are still an essential component of the city’s healthcare safety net,” said HHC President Alan D. Aviles.
Last year, a similar campaign helped bring more than 14,000 children into the health centers.