May 2018

Texas Health Steps: Anticipatory Guidance

The Texas Health Steps (THSteps) website offers providers many resources including up-to-date information on periodicity schedules, checkup components and trainings. Highlighted this month is Anticipatory Guidance – A Guide for Providers. Anticipatory guidance is a necessary component of each checkup because it’s when you give ongoing patient-centric guidance and advice. This guidance helps educate patients and their caregivers about health and development.

The American Academy of Pediatrics stresses the importance of pediatric visits when children are well, in addition to when they are sick. THSteps checkups are essential to ensure good health for your patients, and anticipatory guidance provides education about health, wellness, growth and development in between well visits. As a provider, your involvement in member education and outreach promotes disease prevention and increases health literacy.

Access printable, age age-specific anticipatory guidance topics that may be used during THSteps checkups.

For more information or to ask questions, you can contact Quality Improvement:

Kathleen Thompson, MPH, CHES, CPHQ
Director, Texas Medicaid Quality Management
Kathleen_M_Thompson@bcbstx.com
1-512-349-4836

Julie Sones, RN
Quality Management Specialist III
Julie_L_Sones@bcbstx.com
1-512-795-5904