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As the Victorian State election will be held on Saturday 28 November 2026, the Victorian Government will assume a Caretaker role from 6pm on 3 November 2026. During the caretaker period, content will only be added to this website in accordance with the Caretaker Conventions. See Guidelines for Caretaker Conventions.

Child growth

Introduction

  • Welcome to the child growth e-learning resources for health professionals in Australia working with young children and families. These resources introduce use of the World Health Organization (WHO) Growth Standards for monitoring the growth of children from birth to two years of age.  

    In 2012, all Australian States and Territories agreed to adopt the WHO 2006 Growth Standards for Australian children aged 0 to 2 years.  The WHO growth standards for this age group are already in use in the Northern Territory and Victoria. They are being phased in by other states and territories for use at the primary health care level.

    The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) growth charts from the US remain in use in most jurisdictions for children and adolescents aged 2-18 years. The Northern Territory has adopted the WHO charts for 2-18 year olds and WA has adopted the WHO charts for children up to 5 years.

    The website and resources were funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.

    Learning objectives

    1. To review the best practice techniques for weighing, measuring and monitoring the growth of infants and young children
    2. To understand the similarities and differences between growth charts used in Australia
    3. To understand the principles of growth monitoring, plotting and markers of growth requiring further assessment

    Allow approximately 2 hours to complete the resource, activities and quiz; 1 hour for the background reading and references. You can leave the resource and return any time. 

    Make sure to print or save your certificate prior to closing the browser. You will not be able to access the certificate page at another time and will need to complete the quiz again to obtain a certificate. 

    If you require a copy of your certifcate of completion please make sure you are able to save PDF files on your computer or device prior to commencing the learning package.

     

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