Finding a pediatric care facility in Austintown just got a little bit easier. Akron Children's new pediatric primary care office on Norquest boulevard is now open.

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Thursday afternoon for the primary care facility, which is the 5th for Akron Children's in the Mahoning Valley.

"We believe very strongly that preventive health, identify problems early, early referral and early intervention is the key to life long health and so that's what this is all about," said Dr. Norm Christopher, the Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Akron Children's.

Doctors say its extremely important for parents to get established with a pediatrician early on so they can ensure the child is meeting all of the developmental milestones.

"We like to start seeing babies right after birth, so then about 3 to 5 days from going home from the hospital. The hope is to get you established with a pediatrician that can see you throughout your childhood  and even to your early adult life, said Dr. Erin Donley. "We're looking to stop things before they start and catch them before they become a problem," said Donley.

The office is a primary care facility so they do well visits, sick visits anything a baby, child or teenager might be dealing with.

Although it's only been open for six weeks, the office has been pretty busy.

"We feel being in the Austintown area has been a good move, a good location for us. We have a lot of draw from the surrounding towns and there seems to be a need to taking care of these children," said Dr. Jessica Tattershall.

Dr. Tattershall says parents can also get some peace of mind utilizing this office because of all the resources at their disposal by being under the umbrella of Akron Children's.

"Taking care of a child is not just about the medical concerns, there's a lot of social things that go on as well, so we like to be part of that and help you when we can. We know resources in the community, so feel free to use your pediatrician to ask for those resources because we'll probably know and if not, we'll be able to find them," said Dr. Tattershall.

"We're very, very committed to the community, committed to these families to our relationship with the practices, family medicine practices, the emergency departments, the other pediatricians, really committed to working together with them to provide high quality care and to ensure the very best access for patients and families," said Dr. Norman.

The office is open from 8 to 5 Monday through Friday. They also have some Saturday appointments.