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Childhood developmental screening
13 July 2020
Childhood Developmental Screening (CDS) is conducted as part of preventive care for all children, with the aim of identifying children at risk of developmental delay for early intervention.
The achievement of specific developmental milestones follows a known developmental trajectory. While children develop at different rates, there is an established age range by which each child is expected to reach a specific milestone. To ensure that concerns are detected early, CDS should be conducted regularly, based on the recommended frequency for developmental screenings.
There are seven recommended touchpoints spread across the first 6 years. Each screening visit includes a combination of growth monitoring, physical examination and developmental check on the four domains: personal-social, fine motor, gross motor and language. These screenings are typically conducted together with the recommended childhood vaccinations.
The recommended touchpoints for CDS and National Childhood Immunisation Schedule (NCIS) vaccination visits are listed in Table 1 below.
For detailed information on the NCIS, please refer to the page on “Nationally Recommended Vaccinations”.
Table 1: Recommended touchpoints for CDS and NCIS vaccinations
Age | NCIS Vaccination | Recommended CDS Touchpoints | Age Range for CDS Touchpoint |
At Birth* | BCG (D1) | - | - |
4 weeks | - | 4 weeks | [1] 4 - 8 weeks |
2 months | 6-in-1 (D1)† | - | |
3 months | - | 3 months or 4 months** | [2] 3 - 5 months |
4 months | 5-in-1 (D2) | ||
5 months | - | - | |
6 months | 6-in-1 (D3) | 6 months | [3 & 4] 6 - 12 months |
12 months | MMR (D1) | 12 months | |
15 months | MMRV (D2) | - | [5] 15 - 22 months |
18 months | 5-in-1 (B1) | 18 months | |
30 months | - | 30 months | [6] 24 - 36 months |
48 months | - | 48 months | [7] 48 - 60 months |
D1, D2, D3: Dose 1, dose 2, dose 3
B1, B2: Booster 1, booster 2
* Vaccinations typically administered in hospitals
** Clinicians may wish to conduct the CDS together with vaccinations at 3 months old for children starting on 5-in-1 (DTaP/IPV/Hib) schedule, and at 4 months for children starting on the 6-in-1 schedule. The 5-in-1 vaccine includes DTaP/IPV/Hib. The 6-in-1 vaccine comprises DTaP/IPV/Hib and Hep B.
† For infants born to HbsAG +ve mothers, they will receive their second dose of monovalent Hep B vaccine at 1 month, followed by the 5-in-1 vaccine at 3 months of age.