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Doctor in the house

Ever wonder how MDs keep their own kids healthy? Here's what 10 of them told us

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Originally published in Today's Parent August 2009

Breathing easy
As an ear, nose and throat doc at Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton, Trina Uwiera has seen many a wee thing lodged in kids’ airways: carrots, coins, thumbtacks, screws, bacon, Barbie shoes.… So she takes extra care to prevent choking with her own daughters, ages two, four and seven. “Hot dogs are one of the most dangerous foods,” she says. “I cut them lengthwise into long strips.” Grapes — when sucked whole into the airway — are another common culprit. Uwiera cuts them in half or insists her children bite them before swallowing. She’s also mindful not to hold pins or nails in her teeth while sewing or hammering. “Your children watch and learn from you,” she says.

Brainpower
Physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist Colleen O’Connell of Keswick Ridge, NB, makes sure her two boys, ages six and seven, protect their noggins whenever they ride, slide, ski or skate — even if they’re the only kids wearing helmets. O’Connell has seen kids lose their dreams after traumatic head injuries. “I’ve explained to my kids that your brain helps you think and move, which is why you can play hockey, write stories, play video games.”

Bedtime rules
Batya Grundland is a family physician at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto and mom to a two-year-old boy. “We’ve found that a well-rested child means a happy child who’s much more eager to play, explore, learn and engage in the world around him,” she says. Her son has very regular bedtimes and nap times, even if he isn’t at home. “He’s learned to sleep anywhere as long as there is a crib or Pack ’n Play,” says Grundland.

Posture perfect
Most moms tell their kids to sit up straight, but St. John’s family doctor Susan King speaks from experience. “I see so many people with upper back aches and pains that can become quite debilitating,” she says. When reminders about their posture stopped working with her three boys (now 19, 25 and 27), King talked to them about how rounding their shoulders can affect the way they look as they grow older. Agreeing they didn’t want this to happen, King’s kids devised a signal she could give when they slouched. “I asked them to remind me when my posture isn’t the best either,” says King, “which they had no issue doing!”

R.E.S.P.E.C.T.
Winnipeg paediatrician Janet Grabowski puts a premium on healthy relationships at home. “There is absolutely no swearing in the house,” she says. “They’re not allowed to say things like ‘That’s stupid’ or ‘You’re dumb.’” Grabowski, who has an 11-year-old girl and two teenage boys, often sees kids in her practice fight with and call their siblings names. “Our children have their moments, but they get along very well, and are respectful of people both inside and outside the family.”

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