Darling Downs Paediatrics

10/05/2026

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers, grandmothers and anyone who plays that super-important mothering role in someone's life.

For those of us whose mothers are no longer with us in person, I hope you enjoyed some quiet and happy reflection time with them in spirit❤️

And to all the new mothers locally, remember the free early infant clinics, starting May 21😄

('Mother and Child' art by , Palestinian artist🍉)

04/05/2026

May the 4th be with you, even if you are a pesky Stormshroomer

30/04/2026

https://darlingdownspaediatrics.com.au/early-infant-clinic.html
Early Infancy - spews, poos and sleep-deprived blues! It’s a tricky time, those first few months.Young babies do some weird things and it can be hard sorting out the normal stuff from the worrying stuff.
With Mother’s Day on the horizon, what better time to launch the Darling Downs Paediatrics Early infant Clinic:
A FREE paediatric clinic for Medicare eligible infants, aged 0-3 months.

Who and what is this clinic for:
Well babies with common concerns e.g. :
- Feeding issues
- What is that rash!?
- Jaundice
- Why is there blood in their poo?
- Is this reflux?
- Remind us, what is sleep again?....Essentially to check any concern new parents might have, and new parents often have many concerns! ;)

Who and what this clinic is NOT for:
- Infants older than 3 months (hopefully by 4 months the worries are starting to settle and you can start enjoying the smiles and babbles!)
- Acutely unwell babies: if your young infant is sick, they should be seen at an acute care facility, especially if they have a fever

Clinics starting Thurs May 21, 2026
Booking required but no referral necessary.

14/04/2026

Consultation room for rent as of July 2026!

No, not mine - one of our friends is retiring and may she enjoy her retirement 😊

Feel free to share with anybody who you think might be interested. It could suit many allied health professionals - OT, SPT, psychologist, dietician, lactation consultant....

26/03/2026

This court decision in the US is interesting, unsurprising and most importantly, great news - unusual to have good news out of America these days!

Hopefully it will lead to real changes in how social media can snare our young ones in their addictive webs. (Adults not immune either)

For those who haven't seen it, I recommend watching the 2020 documentary, 'The Social Dilemma' (see link in comments).

The verdict could mark a ‌turning point in the global backlash against their platforms' perceived mental health harms to youth.

20/01/2026

Happy New Year!🥂
2026 is promising to be a lively one around the world and more than ever, we need to be able to sort the evidence from the misinformation.

This is a nice summary of a recently published review in the Lancet confirming that appropriate use of paracetamol in pregnancy is safe - and does NOT increase risk of autism or adhd (aroreretini) in your baby.

Paracetamol can safely treat fever and pain at any stage of pregnancy. And it’s important, as leaving fever untreated can be dangerous for the mother and baby.

01/12/2025

Aroreretini (ADHD) update:
As of today, Dec 1, in QLD, GPs will be able to diagnose and prescribe stimulant medications for adults (18+).

For my patients, the implication is that when they leave school for good, and our paths part, i'm hoping that most of their GPs will be happy to continue providing medication management. Obviously some would benefit from ongoing specialist input.

But for many this will hopefully avoid the stress, lengthy waiting times and significant cost of having to see a psychiatrist to give the GP approval to prescribe.

31/10/2025

Happy Halloween!🎃🧛‍♂️🧟‍♂️🦇

My pumpkin this year is a good luck omen to my childhood baseball club, the who are playing game 6 of the tonight and could win the series...Go Blue Jays!!!⚾️

07/09/2025

Happy Father's day to all the dad's and father figures out there.

Hope you got a decent bit of 'dad time' in today.

01/09/2025

I was privileged to meet Keri Opai at a conference in Queenstown recently. He gave a moving talk on, and is the creator of an amazing piece of evolving work: Te Reo Hāpai — The Language of Enrichment - a glossary of te reo Māori terms for use in the mental health, addiction and disability sectors.

“He mana tō te kupu” — “Words have great power” — a whakataukītanga kōrero (proverbial saying)

The concept is great. English medical, mental health terms etc are translated to language which is more meaningful for the Māori community. New language was created for some words which did not exist in Māori, such as:
‘Autism’ – Takiwātanga - 'my/his/her own time and space'

I particularly love the way they use language that does not emphasize deficit or disability.

Look out for my new friend in the office (seen in the photo below) – the Piwakawaka (or NZ fantail). This inquisitive and energetic friend is constantly on the move, from sunrise to sunset. It is not surprising therefore, that it symbolises another term close to my heart. ADHD, or better yet:
Aroreretini – ‘Attention goes to many things’😊