Given all that could go wrong during the coronavirus epidemic, it might seem crazy to think about having fun. But children need fun. They need it when they’re well, and they need it when they’re sick. They need it, especially, when things are grim. Here in Ohio, lots of children are out of school for the few weeks, at least. And school closures are going to happen everywhere as the epidemic picks up. So here you are, at home, with a 9 year old, and a 7 year old and the 4 year old twins. There’s only so much TV kids can watch before it’s just boring. And even computer games and YouTube videos have their limits. And too many hours staring at screens is bad for children. It was bad for them before coronavirus, and it’s still bad for them. So what can you do? Here are some suggestions: [...]

Yesterday, I called the parents of all the children who were scheduled to see me this morning. I offered, instead, to spend the time talking with them on the phone. Nobody was upset or offended; everyone was grateful. Here in Ohio, schools are closed for the epidemic. That means that many parents are at home with lots of children to look after—all the young ones, and all the older ones, too. The idea of bundling up all of those kids to go to a doctor’s appointment for one of them seems crazy or just plain impossible: Lots of my patients take buses to get to the clinic. Also, many of my patients are being taken care of by their grandparents. The opioid epidemic is part of the reason why. With birthparents in rehab, in jail, or still actively using, the grandparents have stepped in. Older people, like these brave and [...]