alternative vaccine schedule moms, please enter...-

jinnymb

Okay so after a bunch of research DH and I have decided to do Dr. Sear's alternative vaccine schedule.

We started interviewing peditrician's and anticpated this could be a point of contention.  DH did the open house and the doctor repeated several times that they follow the American Academy of Pediatrics schedule (that's fine). But if we did decide to to the alternative schedule we would have to sign some forms but he wasn't clear about it.

 So I called the office today just to follow up and the receptionist told me they will NOT support an alternative schedule and I should find another ped!!!

I told her what the doctor said and that we understood the recommended schedule but def were not having the hep b vaccine in the hosptial and she said that was fine.  I asked her what the big deal is and she said it "confuses things" hmmmmm. 

I'm totally confused now!!

I didn't like her "attitude" but this is the peditrician that has been recommended by all of our friends.

Are you all having trouble with this??  Can they refuse to see your child if you don't do what they say??  Last time I checked there are no laws in place with how you vaccinate your child....

Hulahoop1234

I would say that because it is a private medical practice they can pick and choose who they accept as a patient.  However, if the pedi said that they will support an alternative schedule on the condition you fill out paperwork, and you really like the pedi then I would continue with that office.  Remember that the receptionist will not be treating your child and her answer to you was incomplete and slightly inappropriate.  If you are still concerned about the receptionist specifically, I would mention it to the pedi.

SLHurst11

You can always decline vaccines/treatments, and since you will likely always be present at doctor's appointments, YOU need to take charge of the vaccine schedule and tracking things.  I wouldn't trust the doctor's office to track an alternative schedule, so I'm doing it all myself.  Of course, I'll provide them copies so they can see what I'm planning, but I WILL know what is in that needle before they poke my kid with it.

abba916

does anyone know where to find info on the alt. vaccine schedule itself?

SLHurst11

Dr. Sears, The Vaccine Book

mollyandmarcus

Wow, that is so crazy!  We also did the Dr. Sears vaccine schedule with our first but didn't run into quite the issue.  I would definately look for another practice that would be more accepting.  Our practice follows the usual schedule, but they were open to the Dr. Sears schedule.  Our doc said the only thing she worries is that schedule is a lot more visits (more expense) and she has run into the problem of parents missing shots only appointments and running behind on vaccines.  Other than that, they have not opposed us using the different schedule, but I am very, very detailed in making sure that my LO is getting the right shots at the right times.  I have gone in at her 6 month appointment, for example, and they have tried to give her the shots on the standard schedule and so I am very careful I know what is given when and confirm with them each visit!!! 

flyer23

We've moved multiple times since DD was born and have therefore seen four different pedis.

The first two (combined, we saw them through DD's 9mo checkup) were fine when we told them we didn't want to vaccinate at this time. The first one gave us a bit of a talking-to about the benefits of vaccination when we first turned down the shots, but when we said we still didn't want to vaccinate, she was fine with it. The second one just asked why we didn't want to vaccinate, and left it at that.

The third was a disaster. We saw her for DD's 1-year checkup. At that point, we were actually ready to start vaccinating again -- we just didn't want to do it THAT DAY because we were leaving on a weekend trip and didn't want DD to be in pain/fussy. She read us the riot act and basically implied that we were not welcome in that practice unless we adhered to the standard vaccine schedule.

She was awful for some other completely non-vaccine related reasons as well (e.g. telling us to turn our not-quite-20-pounder forward-facing in her car seat, despite the fact that the car seat manufacturer and the law said that she needed to stay rear-facing), so we found our current pedi. She is completely supportive of whatever vaccine schedule we want to do, and has been wonderful about working with us and giving us her recommendations without pressuring us at all.

Doctors are generally in private practice, so yes, they can refuse to see your child if you don't vaccinate "their way." Anyway, do you really want to be fighting with your pediatrician's office at every well-baby visit over what you are and are not going to do?

Find a pediatrician who wholeheartedly supports alternative vaccination schedules. I think you'll find that the pediatricians who don't try to steamroll parents' preferences for their children are better doctors anyway... I know our current pedi (who is actually family practice, so all of us see her) is one of the best doctors I've ever worked with, because she takes the time to understand our daughter and our family and make recommendations based on that. Not just with vaccines. That's just the tip of the iceberg.