Peditricians

[MrsK]

I need to find one. How do I start? I have a couple recommendations. My mom says I need to set up appointments to interview them. Should I? What should I ask?

[Deebs]

This is such a tricky thing, and one of the hard things we deal with every time we move. If you have recommendations already, I'd probably just make sure that the office you've heard is good is covered by your insurance. Also, I'd personally make sure he/she is board certified. This is one of the specialties where docs seem to not go for board cert or let it lapse. It was always important to me that they be reasonably close to my house, too (with infants, you're going several times in the first year, and it's never easy to get out the door and get there, IMO).

I think you start with someone and see how you feel. We've changed docs within a practice because DH and I just didn't feel whomever we were seeing was a good fit for our family. The practices I've chosen have always had 3+ docs in the practice, so that's helpful. You may want to check if they have weekend hours (our last ped in Ohio saw patients 7 days/week, which was AWESOME, but doesn't exist here). Also, depending on the demand in your area, all practices may not be taking new patients. If that is the case and there is a practice you want to get into, that is when I'd have DH call and ask for professional courtesy. I can't think of anything else. For us, it really has ended up being more of a gut feeling than anything else, but some of that may be that we both have healthcare backgrounds.

[scrub-jay]

I am totally unqualified to answer - but the biggest complaint my close friends and coworkers have is hours. If you can find a practice that holds late hours once a week, or weekend hours - consider yourself lucky. I will be watching this thread closely.

[oceanchild]

Crystal, my husband's a peds resident, and I'm sure I could get you recommendations if you need some.

[scrub-jay]

Crystal, my husband's a peds resident, and I'm sure I could get you recommendations if you need some.

Oh - you are amazing! Come April, I would LOVE recommendations!

[Auspicious]

I didn't interview our ped. We did call the office up and they sent us a packet of info that included their hours, a blurb about each doc in the practice, etc.

The first time we met her was in the hospital when she rounded on our newborn. If our baby had any health problems or we had any specific wishes (delayed schedule vax or something like that) I would have been more picky, but I figured we'd just start going and within a few visits we'd get a sense of whether we were on the same page or not.

ETA: I should have said, I originally got the name of a couple of peds practices from my OB, and then checked into their credentials from there.

[alison]

I asked my OB whom I really like. She gave me the names of a few people, and I like ours (not in love with her, but her hours fit our schedule--it has to fit both of our schedules, because dh needs to come to the appointments when M gets all the shots. I'm a big ol wuss when it comes to that!).

I got a few recommendations and zoned in on one based on the hours as well as location. The biggest thing when I was working was that they have sick walk in hours each morning from 7:45-8:30. I only used it once but I took her when I thought she may have pink eye - she didn't and they cleared her to go to daycare so I went right to work and didn't miss any time at all.

Anyway, I called the practice and each month they hold a meet and greet for new prospective parents/patients. I went and heard from one of the doctors more about the practice and I have been very happy with them. Around here you don't need to choose one until you deliver. My practice doesn't work in the hospital I delivered so they were seen by another practice there and the records were sent over to our ped when we were discharged.

[Pollyanna]

We just went with the recommendations we received from other parents. I'm sure some people do the whole interview thing but that just felt too contrived to me.

[DCJenn]

We're in a different situation but since my husband was a peds subspecialty fellow at the time, he consulted with the Chief of Peds about the issues we would be facing upon our return. She in turn was professionally interested in seeing him after working with international adoptees (there's lots of them in the military!). When we got here, my husband's mentor from residency insisted on seeing the dude.

I have one friend who is odd about her physicians- she interviewed a bunch and didn't like any of them. I don't think she likes any doctors though.

jenn

(I take that back- she call my husband and asks to play the ever fun game, 'I know you're not my pediatrician but...') (and he's started telling her 'you know I haven't done general peds in six years, right?')

[Michele]

I asked around and started with a very highly recommended ped (both by friends and the NICU). First visit he lectured me about my dogs and dog bites....even after I told him I was a veterinarian. It took me two more visits to find another.

The second ped was recommended by our home health nurse that gave Daegan the RSV shots. I liked him, but then the practice had some drama (totally normal and tragic drama - the NP died VERY unexpectedly) and I ended up looking for another ped.

I finally tried out the "LLL ped"...aka "Shreveport Dr Sears"....and I like him. He respects my medical knowledge without making me feel dumb when I go into mom-mode and forget all my training. He's cool about extended breastfeeding and alternative vaccination schedules...two things that are important to me.

I initially felt bad about switching peds so often. But the pediatrician is someone you spend a lot of time with early in your child's life....you should respect and trust her/him.

[Meenah]

Ask the nurses on the pediatric floor and in the ER. They know all of the peds attendings and all of their quirks. Find out which pediatricians the nurses use for their kids.

[MrsK]

Ask the nurses on the pediatric floor and in the ER. They know all of the peds attendings and all of their quirks. Find out which pediatricians the nurses use for their kids.

Good idea. But DrK is rotatating at a mental hospital. No peds. I asked him to ask around and he said he didn't know who to ask.

[Meenah]

This is when he calls in favors!!!!

[Meenah]

If he knows any surgeons ask them. They get all of the peds referrals for hernias, appendicitis, etc from the pediatricians and they usually have a good idea which ones are good diagnosticians and which ones call for every little thing.