As a parent, you always want what’s best for your child. Your goal is to keep your child happy, healthy, and thriving.
At Cotton O’Neil Pediatrics, our goal is the same as yours.
Pediatricians are primary care providers who specialize in treating children. Our pediatricians care for children of all ages as well as youths transitioning into adulthood. These professionals are passionate about keeping young people healthy and strong.
Family medicine physicians can also treat pediatric patients. You might choose this route if you’d prefer to have a single provider for your entire family.
Our Treatments & Services
At Cotton O’Neil Pediatrics, our providers offer:
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Well-child Visits
Physical exams to:- Monitor your child’s growth and development
- Watch for signs of disease or chronic medical conditions
- Screen for lead levels in the blood
- Provide you with information about preventing disease
Young children usually receive well-child visits every few months, and then switch to yearly exams starting at age 3.
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Sports Clearance
When kids participate in sports, many schools or coaches require medical clearance. We provide exams to make sure that your child will be healthy and safe while playing. -
Acute Illness Treatment
Acute illness treatment: If your child has a stuffy nose, sore throat, or a stubborn stomachache, we can test for and treat minor, everyday illnesses (e.g., strep throat, stomach flu). -
Disease Management
Pediatric providers can help families manage certain long-term medical conditions affecting kids, such as asthma. -
Healthy Living Education
We help families learn about healthy eating habits and exercise routines to keep children at a healthy weight. -
Vaccinations
We provide flu shots and vaccines to protect children from illnesses, such as measles and chickenpox.
Express Care
Children can also be seen at any of the Cotton O’Neil Express Care locations. Express Care is our urgent care walk-in clinic for minor illnesses or injuries that can’t be treated immediately by your child’s own physician, but aren’t severe enough to require a visit to the emergency room.
Learn more about Express Care treatment, locations, and hours.
More About Our Pediatric Primary Care
For Newborns and Toddlers
When you bring your little one into our clinics, we make sure that they’re on track with growth and development – from being at a healthy height and weight, to learning how to roll over.
We’ll talk to you about what you can expect as your child grows, such as when you should expect them to start walking or developing fine motor skills (like picking up an object).
If there’s concern that your child isn’t hitting the appropriate benchmarks, we’ll continue to monitor him or her, or refer you to an outside specialist.
If you’ve decided to breastfeed, we also have a certified lactation specialist on staff to help you get started and answer any questions.
It doesn’t matter if it’s your first child or your fifth – we’re committed to giving you the tools to keep your child healthy, and confidence in yourself.
For Young Adults
As children enter adolescence and early adulthood, there are some topics, such as changing bodies or school bullying, that are challenging to tackle. Parents frequently seek guidance or tips from pediatricians on how to raise these subjects. They also ask pediatricians to speak with their child and add any information to the conversation that is relevant to their child’s health.
We can walk these soon-to-be young adults through some of the changes they should expect, and talk to them about issues that they might be hesitant to bring up themselves. We give them a safe environment in which to ask questions, and help them learn about how to keep themselves healthy and safe into early adulthood.
Behavioral Health Specialists
In both of our clinics, we have a behavioral health specialist on staff. The specialists help children with disorders like autism or attention deficit hyperactivity-disorder (ADHD) develop skills to manage and work through emotions, like anger or anxiety.
Since every child is different, we develop a customized plan for each child, depending on their specific needs. A child may receive many different types of treatment, from prescription medications, to weekly sessions with the behavioral health specialist, to referrals for speech or occupational therapy.
Vaccines: Our Shot at Preventing Illness
Did you know that vaccines have reduced the number of vaccine-preventable diseases, like measles and flu, by more than 90%?
That’s why the providers at Cotton O’Neil Pediatrics recommend that children stay up-to-date on their vaccines.
Some Facts About Vaccines:
Vaccines Work
Some diseases like polio, which once handicapped or killed thousands of children, have been eliminated completely with the help of vaccines. The flu vaccine has reduced the risk of dying from the flu in children, including those with certain high-risk medical conditions (e.g., asthma, heart disease).
Vaccines Are Safe
Vaccines go through years of rigorous testing to ensure their safety. Severe allergic reactions are extremely rare. The diseases that vaccines prevent can be serious – even deadly – so the benefits of vaccines significantly outweigh the risks.
Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism
The one study that found a link between the two was actually retracted, meaning it was found to be a flawed study, and the results weren’t correct.
Vaccines Protect the Other People You Care About
Even though vaccines are highly recommended, some children are not vaccinated. That may be due to an illness such as cancer, or due to personal reasons.
However, vaccinations are recommended for most children because they prevent serious illnesses such as measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox.
When you have your child vaccinated, you are also helping to prevent the spread of disease to other children, who might not have been vaccinated due to a serious health condition.
Vaccines for Children Program
Cotton O’Neil Pediatrics is proud to be a part of the national Vaccines for Children program. Children under age 18 who are either uninsured or Medicaid-eligible can receive vaccines free of charge.
Learn more about the Vaccines for Children program.
Community Recognition
Our staff is constantly being recognized for its work in pediatrics and within the community:
- Dr. Randall L. Schumacher was recognized by Health Stream with an Excellence through Insight award in 2016. The award celebrates his ability to gain insight into patients, employees, and physicians, and use that information to build excellence within Cotton O’Neil Pediatrics.
- Elizabeth Piper, LPN, received the DAISY Award for Excellence in Nursing in 2016. The award recognizes both her clinical skills and her compassion.
- Boy Scouts of America Jayhawk Area Council has honored three of our providers with their yearly recognition of Topeka’s Top 20 under 40:
- Sara Wilhelm, PA, in 2017
- Dr. Randall Schumacher in 2015
- Sarah Sachs-Jepson, APRN, in 2012
Meet Our Pediatricians and Providers
Our pediatrics team is made up of eight physicians, two physician assistants and three advanced practice nurses.
