Pediatrician Questions for STM

alphaxi614

I searched the board and didn't see anything about this yet. I'm getting ready to start looking for a pediatrician, but really have no idea what to ask!  As a FTM I'm not really sure what I'm looking for other than they are nice and believe in vaccinating.  So STM's what questions should be asking when I meet with them?

Thanks!!  

KittyMisha

In my experience, most doctors are medically competent. What I have found most important is finding someone that I get along with. I want to feel like my pediatrician and I are on the same team, and not constantly at odds. This means finding someone who actually listens to your concerns all the way to the end and addresses them with something other than "Do it my way because I'm the doctor." It may take a few interactions to learn this, so don't be afraid of switching pediatricians if you aren't clicking.

(Can you tell I had a bad experience?)

BeachM

We've been at 2 different practices since we moved after DS was born.  Both times at the first appointment the pedi and/or nurse went over all sorts of information like office hours, if there are walk in hours, what to do after hours and for emergencies, that they follow the CDC vaccine schedule, info about the nurse line, etc.  My experience has been that both times they answered all the questions I had before I had a chance to ask them!

caballablanca

Find out about hours, separate sick room vs well baby checkup waiting rooms. Is there an LC on site? How do they screen for things like developmental delays? What is their policies on vaccine schedules ( some places won't even take patients if they won't vax)?

Rosebean

Honestly, my pediatrician was recommended to me by my OB... it turns out that he was not taking on new patients, but only took us on because him and my OB were old buddies. And to be honest, there really is so much more than just vaccinations to think on. Like maybe you want to ask about policies for when you should make a call when you are concerned... are they going to send you to a walk in clinic when they are too busy... What is your Ped's policy on when to start foods and how to start foods (we chose to do Baby Led Weaning which is extremely controversial still in Canada- our Ped was very supportive of it, but I have talked to women on BLW support boards who had Peds that were extremely against it)...

 I would ask if they have found their practice changing over the years... as in, our Ped is an older gentleman who was my friend's Ped when he was little. But because he keeps up with his information, he is open and up to date on his knowledge. Some Peds can be very old fashioned, so I would feel them out on this because as you parent, and with the internet allowing you to be more educated, you are going to want a Ped that can grow with the times with you, not hold you back. 

MamaTugboat

Our OB gave us a list of pediatricians the practice recommends. Also, ask around from co-workers/friends.  I'm a FTM, and I also got this bit of advice at my recent appt, which I thought was very prudent:

1. make sure the pediatrician office is nearby/easy to get to.

2. Call up the offices and see how long it takes you to actually talk to somebody (ie if there's a complicated phone key system) and how long it takes for them to call you back if you had to leave a message. 

Also, a lot of pediatricians offices will hold a monthly 'open house' night for prospective parents. We're going to two in the coming month. We narrowed down our list based on the above two criteria, and looked at the website. Call me an MD snob, but I totally read into where a person went to school for undergrad and med school, and we use that info to choose our dr. 

Valancyy

Ask about sick visits.  Will they see you same day?  My pediatrician's office will see you within an hour or so for a sick visit. 

Jenrileysmom

We don't have much to choose from in my area but with DD we started out with one doctor and we have since switched to another. It wasn't that I didn't like the first guy, it was just so stinking hard to get into his office. I would call when she was sick and not be able to get in until the following week. I'm much happier with the Ped that we go to now.

kcatboston

I agree with PPs on the hours. Our office has two locations one of which is open until 7pm on weekdays and Saturday & Sunday for sick visits.

Also, if there is more than one doctor how do they work. The office we go to has teams where each doctor has 2 nurse practitioners that work with them. So for a well visit DD will always see one of the same three people. Sick visits I usually just take the first spot they have available.
 

alphaxi614

Thanks ladies, this is all so helpful.  I hadn't even thought about things like sick visits, waiting times, screenings, at all!   Honestly I'm just now starting to realize that I have to think beyond just giving birth to him!  

I've gotten some recommendations from friends and co-workers for peds up in my part of town.  I'll start calling soon and seeing about wait times and such.  

shevaCC

Definitely the length of wait times, both in office for scheduled appointments and for getting an appointment for a sick child, are important. Also if (when) you have a question do they have a nurse that can call you back, or your pedi, without having to go in (can I give XYZ medicine for this, should I go to ER/urgent care or wait for an appointment, is this normal)? What about on weekends or off-hours?

lizztheo

For me, I wanted somebody who was not formula-pushy and was supportive of breastfeeding the first year, starting solids at 6 months and knew how to care for an intact penis. When our regular ped was really backed up and we had been in office over an hour, the NP came in to see us instead. She retracted my son's foreskin. It happened so fast, I couldn't even stop it but I was furious and will tell every doctor who does a check on my son's from now on: do not retract his foreskin. These were the major things for us. I've heard way too many doctors say that breastfeeding after 6 months is pointless. My ped knows that we are still breastfeeding at 20 months and she hasn't said a word about it. And a big thing for me that I wish our pediatrician's office had is a seperate sick baby waiting room. I hate bringing my son in for check ups and he has to play in the waiting area with the sick children.

Valancyy

lizztheo said:

I've heard way too many doctors say that breastfeeding after 6 months is pointless. My ped knows that we are still breastfeeding at 20 months and she hasn't said a word about it. And a big thing for me that I wish our pediatrician's office had is a seperate sick baby waiting room. I hate bringing my son in for check ups and he has to play in the waiting area with the sick children.

@lizztheo:  That's ridiculous.  We know breastfeeding is always beneficial, but even from the standpoint of avoiding formula (say, even for monetary reasons), bf'ing for at least a year would make sense.  Otherwise, you have to switch to formula at 6 months.

lizztheo

Valancyy said:

lizztheo said:

I've heard way too many doctors say that breastfeeding after 6 months is pointless. My ped knows that we are still breastfeeding at 20 months and she hasn't said a word about it. And a big thing for me that I wish our pediatrician's office had is a seperate sick baby waiting room. I hate bringing my son in for check ups and he has to play in the waiting area with the sick children.

@lizztheo:  That's ridiculous.  We know breastfeeding is always beneficial, but even from the standpoint of avoiding formula (say, even for monetary reasons), bf'ing for at least a year would make sense.  Otherwise, you have to switch to formula at 6 months.

It's absolutely ridiculous; the AAP recommends breastfeeding the full first year. If you choose to or have to formula feed, that's fine and they shouldn't shame that either but doctor's shouldn't push formula onto moms who are trying to successfully reach that breastfeeding goal.

haliebabyx3

I'm a FTM but LO will see the same pediatrician I did. I saw her until I was 21 and I know much hasn't changed since then. I just plan on calling and asking what I need to do. I've been told by a co-worker that I need to call because of space and availability. I'm crossing my fingers there is space. I loved when I saw her. 

smfdjo

I didn't meet my peditritian before hand.  I went on recommendation from mom friends.  Than I looked up reviews as well.  I knew I wasn't going to deviate from the vaccination schedule so nothing there.  You can always switch doctors if you don't like them. You can ask as many questions as you want but until you start dealing with them on a regular basis you won't know if they are a good fit for you and your child.

PecanSam

Everyone pretty much covered what I was going to say.

Something that was really important to us, is that our Dr is on the same wavelength as us. We wanted someone who supported breastfeeding, wasn't quick to give out antibiotics, got to know our daughter, etc. she doesn't talk down to us and explains everything to us. She encourages us to ask questions. She can even recognize when our daughter is not herself.

kiley820

My OB office gave me a list of questions/ things to consider when searching for a pediatrician. If not for that, I don't think I would have thought so much about it to be honest! There were some really good points though and things I know I would have not thought about. I'll look for it and post back here if they haven't already been brought up. (I haven't read the whole thread, yet )

WhitEm14

I agree with PP's. Finding someone you have rapport with and that you feel comfortable asking your 1 million questions to, no matter how crazy you may feel asking them (I feel like I have asked some pretty silly questions with DS and our pedi was always kind and helpful). Also, a place that's open on Saturdays is a nice perk and a place that will let you talk to a nurse or your doctor on the phone (so you don't have to come in for EVERY LITTLE THING). Ours also has an email portal so that I can send an email if I know it's not pressing.