Rainbow Medical Centre GP praised for observations on boy with autism

After securing a last minute appointment at Rainbow Medical Centre, Rosie Sampson took her two-year-old son Ronnie for his first check up with Dr Sayed.

As Ronnie has autism, he often struggles in situations that are out of his routine or not used to, and he has become "almost uncontrollable" at previous appointments due to feeling so stressed and overwhelmed.

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Ronnie often struggles in unfamiliar situations due to his autism (Image: Rosie Sampson)

However, despite the apprehension of taking Ronnie into a new setting and to a new doctor, Rosie's fears were instantly calmed when Dr Sayed began chatting to the youngster in a friendly and engaging way.

To perform the necessary observations without it being stressful or invasive, Dr Sayed began performing repetitive behaviours such as spinning on his chair, tickling Ronnie's tummy, and repeatedly high-fiving him.

While keeping the two-year-old engaged and distracted, this provided the GP with the opportunity to look down his throat and observe his tonsils and other check ups to make sure Ronnie is happy and healthy.

Dr Sayed kept Ronnie laughing and distracted in order to complete his health check ups (Image: Rosie Sampson)

Rosie, a teaching assistant from New Bold, said: "It’s the first time I’ve had the privilege to have an appointment with Dr Sayed, and hopefully not the last with him retiring soon!

"He spoke in such a friendly manner to Ronnie and he took to him immediately with how welcoming Dr Sayed was.

"He understood that Ronnie loves repetitive behaviour [so] all the important observations felt like fun and not so much like an invasion of privacy which is what it can feel like for Ronnie.

"When going to new places that he is unsure of, Ronnie tends to stick in his pram as it’s his ‘safe place’ where he knows he’s not expected to do anything. Ronnie kept saying ‘come out’ to come out of his pram which is a massive deal for him."

On holiday with the family (Image: Rosie Sampson)

After initially wanting to share her appreciation as a review online, Rosie took to social media to show her gratitude for Dr Sayed's help with Ronnie, which was in massive contrast to previous doctor's appointments.

With Dr Sayed a well-known and highly respected GP, hundreds of people engaged with her online post, with many commending his actions and sharing anecdotes of how he has cared for their families in a similarly kind and thoughtful way.