The aim of childcare is to promote the health, well-being and development of young children through regular health check-ups as well as support and health education for their families. Emphasis is placed on supporting the family. Children's development is monitored from birth to school age.
Nurses and doctors at health centers take care of young and small children. The work is done accordingly the instructions of the National Medical Examiner's Office on the protection of young and small children.
Home visits and clinic visits
Youth and toddler care is available to all parents free of charge. Parents of newborn babies are offered home visits for the first few weeks and then come to the clinic with the baby for check-ups. In the home visits, the nurse examines the child, assesses its development, weight and head circumference. Parents receive advice and education regarding the care of the child and their own well-being.
When the child is six weeks old, there is a medical examination at a health center and at the age of three months vaccinations begin. Conventional vaccinations are carried out according to the instructions of an epidemiologist at the Office of the National Surgeon.
Parents are welcome to contact the childcare nurses beyond these scheduled visits.
Examinations and vaccinations
Here you can see an overview of inspections and vaccinations in infant and toddler care according to different ages:
| Age | Who looks | what is done |
| <6 weeks | Nurse | Home knowledge. |
| 6 weeks | Nurse and doctor | Inspection. |
| 9 weeks | Nurse | Home visit or examination at a health center. |
| 3 months old | Nurse and doctor | Examination and vaccination against pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and poliomyelitis in one injection, pneumococci in another injection. |
| 5 months old | Nurse | Examination and vaccination against pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and poliomyelitis in one injection, pneumococci in another injection. |
| 6 months old | Nurse | Examination and vaccination against meningococci C. |
| 8 months old | Nurse | Examination and vaccination against meningococci C. |
| 10 months old | Nurse and doctor | Inspection. |
| 12 months old | Nurse | Examination and vaccination against pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and poliomyelitis in one injection, pneumococci in another injection. PEDS Parental assessment of child development. |
| 18 months old | Nurse and doctor | Examination and vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella in one syringe. PEDS Parental assessment of child development. |
| 2 1/2 years old | Nurse | Screening, PEDS Parent Assessment of Child Development, Brigance Developmental Screening. |
| 4 years old | Nurse | Examination, vision test, PEDS Parental Assessment of Child Development, Brigance Developmental Screening. Vaccination against pertussis, diphtheria and tetanus in one injection. |
Breastfeeding
Breast milk is the best nutrition available for the infant. It is recommended that a child receives only breast milk for the first 4-6 months and that breast milk is part of the diet for the entire first year or longer.
More information about breastfeeding can be found at midwife.is and landlæður.is.
2 1/2 year child checkup
We would like to remind parents of the importance of attending their children's 2 1/2 year check-up. Most children have a registered time of over 2 1/2 years. During the 2 1/2-year examination, the child's development is assessed, the child's height and weight are measured.
The child is accompanied by a parent/guardian to the examination. We try to make the interview interesting and easy for the child. The inspection can be expected to take up to 45 minutes.
We would like to advise parents not to bring siblings to the examination, as it can have a disturbing effect on the child.
4 year child checkup
In the 4-year check-up of children, the child's development is assessed, the child's height and weight are measured and the child's vision is tested. At this age, the child is also vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis in one shot.
The child is accompanied by a parent/guardian to the examination. We try to make this interview interesting and easy for the child. The inspection can be expected to take up to 40 minutes.
We would like to advise parents not to bring siblings to the examination as it can have a disturbing effect on the child.
Updated December 14, 2021 (Björn Snorri)