Paediatric GP Consultation vs Paediatric Specialist Consultation — Which Is Right for Your Child?
This is the most important question to answer before booking — because choosing the right level of care gets your child the right assessment first time.
Our Paediatric GP Consultation is more appropriate if your child has:
- A common acute illness — cold, flu, ear infection, fever, rash, gastroenteritis
- A straightforward skin condition — eczema flare, mild infection, nappy rash
- A one-off concern that needs clinical assessment but is unlikely to require specialist input
- A need for a sick note, medical certificate, or school absence documentation
- A concern that needs initial assessment before deciding whether specialist input is warranted
Our Paediatric Specialist Consultation is more appropriate if your child has:
- A complex, multi-system, or poorly controlled chronic condition
- A developmental concern — speech delay, motor delay, behavioural difficulties, suspected autism or ADHD — requiring specialist assessment
- A condition that has not responded adequately to GP-level management
- A diagnosis you want reviewed or a second opinion on from a consultant paediatrician
- A complex neonatal or infant presentation requiring specialist assessment
- A condition requiring specialist investigation coordination — imaging, specialist blood tests, or subspecialty referral
- A presentation where a consultant paediatrician's specialist formulation is needed to guide ongoing management
Not sure which to book? Start with our Paediatric GP Consultation. Your GP will assess your child and advise on whether specialist paediatric input is needed.
What Remote Paediatric Specialist Consultation Covers
A consultant paediatrician brings a level of clinical expertise and diagnostic depth that is not available at GP level — and a substantial proportion of specialist paediatric assessment, management review, and second opinion consultation can be conducted via video call to consultant standard.
What this specialist consultation covers:
- Comprehensive specialist paediatric assessment and clinical formulation
- Review and clarification of existing paediatric diagnoses
- Assessment and management of complex or poorly controlled chronic conditions
- Developmental assessment — including neurodevelopmental concerns, speech and language, motor development, and behavioural presentations
- Second opinion on paediatric diagnoses or management plans
- Specialist investigation coordination — imaging, subspecialty referral, specialist blood tests
- Review of existing investigation results with specialist paediatric interpretation
- Transition planning — from paediatric to adult services
- Coordination with GP, allied health professionals, and subspecialty services
What requires in-person assessment:
- Physical examination — cardiac auscultation, abdominal assessment, neurological examination, assessment of dysmorphic features
- Acute presentations requiring hands-on assessment
- Procedures — always require in-person attendance
- Emergency presentations — always attend A&E
Your paediatrician will advise clearly if your child's presentation requires in-person assessment and will coordinate the appropriate referral pathway.
Conditions Commonly Assessed and Managed
- Neurodevelopmental Conditions
- Autism spectrum disorder — specialist assessment, diagnosis review, and management coordination
- ADHD — attention deficit hyperactivity disorder — specialist assessment and management
- Developmental delay — global, speech and language, motor, and cognitive
- Specific learning difficulties — dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia — specialist assessment and coordination
- Intellectual disability — assessment and management coordination
- Tic disorders and Tourette syndrome
- Sensory processing difficulties
- Respiratory Conditions
- Complex or poorly controlled asthma — specialist assessment and management optimisation
- Recurrent respiratory infections — specialist assessment and investigation
- Chronic cough — specialist evaluation and investigation coordination
- Wheeze in infants and young children — specialist assessment and management
- Allergic respiratory conditions — rhinitis, asthma — specialist management
- Gastrointestinal Conditions
- Gastro-oesophageal reflux — complex or treatment-resistant presentations
- Coeliac disease — diagnosis review and management
- Inflammatory bowel disease — management support and coordination
- Constipation — complex or treatment-resistant presentations
- Recurrent abdominal pain — specialist assessment and investigation
- Feeding difficulties — specialist assessment in infants and young children
- Failure to thrive — specialist assessment and investigation coordination
- Allergic & Immunological Conditions
- Complex food allergy — specialist assessment and management
- Anaphylaxis history — specialist review and management planning
- Eczema — complex or treatment-resistant presentations
- Urticaria — recurrent or chronic presentations
- Immunodeficiency concerns — initial assessment and referral coordination
- Endocrine & Metabolic Conditions
- Growth concerns — short stature, tall stature, growth faltering
- Obesity in children — specialist assessment and management
- Thyroid conditions in children — assessment and management
- Diabetes — Type 1 management review and coordination
- Pubertal concerns — precocious or delayed puberty
- Neurological Conditions
- Headache and migraine in children — specialist assessment and management
- Epilepsy — management review and coordination
- Febrile seizures — specialist assessment and parental guidance
- Neurodevelopmental conditions with neurological comorbidity
- Developmental regression — specialist assessment and investigation
- Behavioural & Mental Health
- Anxiety in children and adolescents — specialist assessment
- Depression in children and adolescents — specialist assessment
- Behavioural difficulties — specialist assessment and management coordination
- Sleep disorders in children — specialist assessment and management
- School refusal — specialist assessment and coordination
- Eating difficulties and disordered eating in adolescents
- Neonatal & Infant
- Neonatal concerns following hospital discharge
- Infant feeding difficulties — breast and bottle feeding
- Colic and excessive crying — specialist assessment
- Jaundice concerns following neonatal period
- Growth and weight concerns in infants
- Other
- Recurrent infections — specialist assessment and immunological investigation
- Anaemia in children — specialist assessment and investigation
- Paediatric second opinion — independent specialist review of diagnosis or management plan
- Pre-travel health for children — specialist advice for children travelling to higher-risk destinations
- Adolescent health — complex presentations in teenagers
What Your Consultation Includes
Comprehensive Specialist Paediatric AssessmentYour consultant paediatrician will conduct a thorough specialist assessment — covering your child's presenting concern, full medical history, developmental history, family history, birth history, vaccination status, growth trajectory, and social context. The assessment is conducted with you as parent or caregiver present throughout.
Specialist Clinical FormulationBased on the assessment, your paediatrician will provide a specialist clinical formulation — explaining what is driving your child's presentation, what further assessment or investigation is needed, and what the management pathway looks like. This formulation is explained clearly in plain language and shared with your child's GP.
Review of Existing Investigations and ReportsIf your child has existing blood results, imaging reports, developmental assessments, school reports, or specialist letters, your paediatrician will review these in full — providing specialist interpretation and incorporating them into the clinical formulation.
Specialist Investigation CoordinationWhere further investigations are clinically indicated — including specialist blood tests, imaging, subspecialty referral, or allied health assessment — your paediatrician will coordinate these through our Referral & Diagnostic Investigation service.
Specialist Management PlanBased on the assessment, your paediatrician will provide a comprehensive management plan — including clinical recommendations at the specialist's professional discretion, coordination with allied health professionals, and a clear follow-up pathway.
Second OpinionFor parents seeking an independent specialist review of their child's diagnosis or management plan — including opinions received from other paediatricians or in other countries — your paediatrician will conduct a full assessment and provide a clear, evidence-based independent perspective.
Consent, Confidentiality, and Safeguarding
Parental ConsentAll paediatric consultations require a parent or legal guardian to be present throughout and to provide informed consent for the consultation and any clinical recommendations made. For separated or divorced parents, the consenting parent or guardian should have legal parental responsibility.
Adolescent ConfidentialityFor adolescent patients — particularly those aged 16 and over — your paediatrician will balance the adolescent's right to confidentiality with appropriate parental involvement, in accordance with Irish medical and legal standards. Where an adolescent patient has concerns they wish to discuss privately, your paediatrician will handle this sensitively and in accordance with clinical best practice.
SafeguardingOur paediatricians are bound by Irish child safeguarding legislation and professional obligations. Where a consultation raises safeguarding concerns, your paediatrician is legally and professionally obligated to act in accordance with Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children. This obligation takes precedence over confidentiality.
Data ProtectionAll patient information — for both the child and the parent or caregiver — is protected under strict GDPR and Irish data protection standards. Clinical records are maintained securely and in accordance with professional record-keeping requirements.
Why Patients Choose Us
IMC Specialist Division — PaediatricsOur paediatricians are registered on the Specialist Division in Paediatrics with the Irish Medical Council — the highest level of paediatric qualification in Ireland. You are speaking with a consultant paediatrician, not a GP with a paediatric interest.
Consultant-level diagnostic formulationA consultant paediatrician brings a level of diagnostic depth, subspecialty knowledge, and clinical formulation that is not available at GP level. For complex, poorly understood, or treatment-resistant presentations, consultant-level assessment frequently changes the clinical trajectory.
Same-day and advance appointmentsAvailable seven days a week including evenings and weekends — because parental concern about a child's health does not follow office hours and access to specialist paediatric opinion should not require a months-long waiting list.
Second opinion expertiseOur paediatricians regularly provide independent second opinions on paediatric diagnoses and management plans — including those received from other paediatricians or in other countries. This service is particularly valuable for expat families managing complex paediatric conditions across healthcare systems.
Existing investigation reviewExisting blood results, imaging, developmental assessments, and specialist reports are reviewed by a consultant paediatrician — providing the specialist interpretation that these investigations require and frequently clarifying clinical pictures that have been unclear at GP level.
Multi-lingual paediatric careConsultations available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech, and Romanian — removing the language barrier that many international families face when seeking specialist paediatric care in Ireland.
Expat and international family expertiseOur paediatricians regularly support expat families managing paediatric conditions across healthcare systems — reviewing diagnoses made abroad, assessing management plans within the Irish clinical context, and providing continuity of specialist care for families navigating multiple healthcare systems.
