Well child care in family medicine: part 1: physical examination, developmental assessment and evaluation of parenting skills.

The periodic health examination of the well child offers an opportunity for examining the child, immunizing the child against infectious disease, counselling the parents about adequate nutrition and evaluating parenting skills. Part 1 of this article outlines the criteria used in physical examination and developmental assessment, and counselling on parenting. Part 2 will deal with immunization and counselling on nutrition.