No pediatrician?

AACraven85

Bad mom over here.. I haven't yet selected a pediatrician for LO. If I go into PTL without one selected.......... what happens? Will whoever is on staff at the hospital check her out? What about appointments that occur during her first week(s)?

I keep thinking I will be fine if I have this sorted out by the end of the month (baby is high, I'm not dialated at all, women in my family have a history of going 10 days(!) past EDD) and I probably will be.. but this "what if" popped into my head today as I just had my 35/35 yesterday.

magdalina.h

I was wondering the same thing

Jessie_ea

The in house pediatrician would see the baby after birth if you either don't have one of your own or if the one you have doesn't come to the hospital you're delivering at. At my hospital they won't release the baby to you if you don't have a pediatrician for them to send everything to. This could be different at different hospitals so it's something that you may want to look into. If I were you I'd just find a few that you want to meet with and call for an appointment to do so. If you're not sure who to interview you could try asking your OB, that's what I did and they gave me the names of a few doctors they have worked with and recommend. Hope this helps. 

AACraven85

Jessie_ea:

The in house pediatrician would see the baby after birth if you either don't have one of your own or if the one you have doesn't come to the hospital you're delivering at. At my hospital they won't release the baby to you if you don't have a pediatrician for them to send everything to. This could be different at different hospitals so it's something that you may want to look into. If I were you I'd just find a few that you want to meet with and call for an appointment to do so. If you're not sure who to interview you could try asking your OB, that's what I did and they gave me the names of a few doctors they have worked with and recommend. Hope this helps. 

 Wowza! That first bold statement sure lit a fire under my a$$, that's for sure!

Oddly enough, my OB's reccomendation doesn't accept my insurance, which kind of threw me for a loop.

RumbleLina

I have not chosen a pedi yet either. But that is because apparently you just tell them at the hospital and don't really "reserve" a spot. I have one in mind but last I checked she was not accepting patients so no idea what will happen. Our clinic does not allow interviews so I am just going with the flow ( I think they do not allow them because it is such a large clinic)

If you do not have a pedi at birth there is one on staff at the time to check out your LO. I am not sure if this changes from hospital to hospital but you should then have an option to continue with the pedi once you leave the hospital. That is what we may end up doing.

Jessie_ea

 Wowza! That first bold statement sure lit a fire under my a$$, that's for sure!

Oddly enough, my OB's reccomendation doesn't accept my insurance, which kind of threw me for a loop.

Don't get too worried about it. I just started meeting with a couple doctors in the past couple of weeks. They have been very good about getting me in quick so that I can choose before I'm due. You could try asking friends or family if they have someone they like or just look through the doctors covered by your insurance and choose a few that sound good. A lot of offices have Web sites now, so that could help you get a feel for the practice before you waste your time meeting with them. 

momranda

Im not sure if my son will be covered by the state or my insurance, and I told my OB that, they said i can use the hospital one for up to 6 weeks until i determine what insurance and of course what pediatrician i will use. Maybe thats just in md.

Firedancer1013

I just picked one out yesterday.  I only interviewed one, and thankfully he is going to work out well I think.  I got a really good recommendation from a coworker who has used him for the past 7 years, and he surprisingly has a lot of the same viewpoints that I do.  I'm really thankful that we found one, but I admit I was stressing about this as well because the OB kept asking if I had one yet...but again I didn't find him until mid 36 weeks, so you have some time left, right?  :-D

glinters

I picked one after scheduling what they called a "prenatal visit".  There was no charge although some do expect a co pay. I asked my local pharmacist who many moms are using along with my health insurance company for recommendations.  It is a large office with 5 pedi's and I met with one who spent over an hour giving us a tour and answering questions we even received a goody bag.  I am delivering at hospital that they are not affiliated with so I had many questions about what I needed to do after birth.  We will use the hospital assigned one and then are expected for a first visit two days  after being released.  She also discussed vaccinations and recommended turning down Hep B because it is given as part of a combo vaccine later on. I kept putting it off too but I am glad to be done with.

Tempus

I haven't either but mostly because I thought we were going to be moving. I did get some recommendations from BF's SIL though cause she lives in the area. I'm gonna call them tomorrow and set up an interview.

karakaye

i havent looked for one either. i dont see whats so wrong with the hospital one doing it, which apparently is an appalling thought to some busybodies.

njmoh

my sister had here baby on 12/30/10, she didn't have a peditrician yet so the on call pedi check him and she did a follow up appt at his office. She did not like him so we have an appt with a new one tomorrow. I'm going with her to see if I like him.  You can ask your OB for a rec.