December 2023 Community Courier

Employee Anniversary

This month we celebrate nurse practitioner Katie Smith's 5th anniversary with Pediatric Associates!  Katie is from Louisville, KY. She received her undergraduate nursing degree from the University of Kentucky and her family nurse practitioner degree from the University of Cincinnati. Katie came to us with several years of experience as a labor & delivery and NICU nurse. In her free time, Katie enjoys traveling, exercising, baking, and spending time with her husband and their 2 children. Katie brings such compassion when caring for families and when working with staff and other providers. When asked what she loves about working at Pediatric Associates, she says "I love getting to see the newborns and new/growing families. It’s an honor to be part of their journey--as well as watching the kiddos grow over the years, getting to witness the milestones throughout their life."  We know families appreciate Katie's work and we do too.  Please join us in celebrating Katie Smith, ARPN!

New PANK Myth Busters Video: Cough Medication

Jessica Gardner, MD talks about the Myths of Cough Medicine.

Welcome Our New Provider, Peyton Wohlwender, APRN

Please welcome the newest addition to our behavioral health department. Peyton will be seeing patients and prescribing medicines for common behavioral health concerns like depression, anxiety, and ADHD. Peyton was born and raised in Northern Kentucky. She is a certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, specializing in Primary Care. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biology and Spanish from Centre College. She went on to complete her Masters of Science in Nursing as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at Vanderbilt University. Peyton has experience working in pediatric primary care and behavioral medicine. Her medical interest include pediatric ADHD, anxiety and depression. 

Penicillin Allergy & Why Many Kids Can Take Amox Again

Is your child allergic to amoxicillin? Many children who are labeled with a medication allergy are not truly allergic. Some children develop rashes while on antibiotics due to other causes or as a less severe side effect from the medication. Determining if children have a true allergy is helpful. Amoxicillin is often the first line treatment for common infections such as ear infections, sinus infections, and pneumonia. Amoxicillin may be more effective, less expensive, and may have fewer side effects than alternative antibiotics. Overusing alternative antibiotics may also lead to resistance. If you would like to discuss a medication allergy and possible testing with your provider, you may complete this questionnaire  and bring the result with you to your next appointment.

Lab Results

We are upgrading the way we will be sending and receiving your lab results. Because of this change, there may be possible slowdowns on receiving labs for a short period of time.

Winter Illnesses Are Here
With students returned to school we are seeing an increase in strep throat and covid cases in our offices. Symptoms are often very similar and include fever, sore throat, headache, stomach ache, and sometimes body aches. We want to remind everyone if your child has symptoms of either of these illnesses, we are happy to see you in the office for testing. You can also check out our What's Going Around section on our website. 

Holiday Hours 2023
The Holidays are coming up quickly! We hope that your family are healthy over the holiday season. In case you need us, we’re here to help.

As usual, all offices are closed on Sundays. This year that means we will be closed on Christmas Eve, December 24, Christmas Day December 25, New Year’s Eve December 31, and New Year’s Day January 1. 

Remember we always are available on Saturday's, including December 23, and 30.

 If you have an urgent need when we are not in the office, we will have a provider on call to talk to you and advise you how best to treat your child. We may close early some of the days between December 26 and 29 so please call early if you think you need an appointment

Calling Artists of All Ages!

You let us know that we needed to liven up our exam rooms and we listened.  In thinking of the best way to add color, personality and interest to our walls we realized that we have the best crew to do this in all of you. To test this out we put frames in a few exam rooms at our Crestview Hills and Union/Florence locations.  They are designed for artwork from our patients of all ages.  Please bring in artwork at your next visit, send it in the mail or drop it off at any of the locations.  8 ½ x 11 art will fit best but we will work with anything we receive.  We will not be able to return your artwork but know that it will be displayed in the office.  Your choice if you sign it or keep us guessing who the next Picasso is in the practice.  If you all give us the thumbs up we will add frames to the other exam rooms to make space for more artwork.

Baby Photo Backdrops Available

Want to document your baby's first check up?  We now have backdrops you may use to capture that cute pic.

Flu Vaccines for the Whole Household!
We are excited to be able to keep families well this winter by vaccinating our patients and the adults who live with them. 

COVID Vaccines for 2023
The monovalent (one strain) COVID vaccine is available in our office. This vaccine replaces the previous bivalent vaccine. We have the Moderna brand which is approved for ages 6 months and older. We expect that this will be an annual vaccine just like the influenza vaccine. We have vaccines available for all ages. Please call the office to schedule an appointment. 

Pediatric Associates
2865 Chancellor Dr.
STE 225
Crestview Hills, Ky. 41017
859-341-5400