Interviewing a pediatrician

magdusia · June 2009

has anyone interviewed a pediatrician yet or planning on soon?

Do you actually call the office and say "I'm having a baby and i'd like to interview you?"

will there be a co-pay for this?

i guess i just assumed you book an appointment with your baby and if you click, that's great.. if you dont, you switch.

rinny627 · June 2009

I have the same question

starcolls · June 2009

i have heard of people doing this, but never really sure how the whole process worked. we will just go with a ped group that several of my friends in the area recommend.

adharper2615 · June 2009

I haven't had to. I'm taking the advice of about 10 of my GFs who all use the same Pedi. If I feel after the first appt. that I don't like him, I will worry about interviewing others and making a change.

I would just call and say exactly what you said, though, about expecting and wanting to set up an interview/meeting.

Pam081206 · June 2009

I was feeling a bit funny about this as well, but when I went to the website of the pediatrics office that I'm considering I saw this and it made me feel better about it:

"Prenatal Visits
If you are expecting a new baby, you probably have many questions. We encourage expectant parents to schedule a prenatal consultation with one of our pediatricians. This is an excellent time to ask questions, meet your baby's future pediatrician and become familiar with the office. The prenatal consultation is available at no charge."

I'm not sure if all offices are like this, but maybe you could to see if the one you are interested in has a similar statement on their website.

ENev · June 2009

I don't really get the whole interviewing pediatricians thing, either. I've never interviewed a doctor for my own purposes. If we pick one and don't like him/her after the first appointment, we'll switch.

But they're all real doctors - it's not like they're going to harm your child, even if you don't like their bedside manner. I think we're just going to pick one near us that is covered by insurance and call it a day!

EnglishMajor03 · June 2009

We didn't pay a copay and yes, we found out which peds were taking new patients, then picked one and intereviewed her. I asked questions about the hours that she worked, how many different doctors were on her 'team' and if we'd mostly see her or the other doctors. I also asked about the emergent hours they have. Our peds office is affiliated with a very good hospital in our area, so that was also important to us. We wanted to make sure that if we needed to see a specialist for any reason, that we would have access. It was a good ? to ask, especially because DD was born with special needs and we see many of the specialists when they visit the campus we go to.

DH and I did feel kind of silly doing an 'interview' but I'm glad we did. I really clicked with our ped, but DH was more standoffish because of her personality. My boss' personality was similar to hers so I could work within her parameters. It's been a very sucessful relationship so far, especially at the beginning with all the specialists we needed to see! Good luck!

magdusia · June 2009

Pam081206:
I was feeling a bit funny about this as well, but when I went to the website of the pediatrics office that I'm considering I saw this and it made me feel better about it:
"Prenatal Visits
If you are expecting a new baby, you probably have many questions. We encourage expectant parents to schedule a prenatal consultation with one of our pediatricians. This is an excellent time to ask questions, meet your baby's future pediatrician and become familiar with the office. The prenatal consultation is available at no charge."
I'm not sure if all offices are like this, but maybe you could to see if the one you are interested in has a similar statement on their website.

That's perfect.. I guess it's nicer and less awkward to just ask for a The prenatal consultation

at least the wording is better, rather than an INTERVIEW

magdusia · June 2009

EnglishMajor03:
We didn't pay a copay and yes, we found out which peds were taking new patients, then picked one and intereviewed her. I asked questions about the hours that she worked, how many different doctors were on her 'team' and if we'd mostly see her or the other doctors. I also asked about the emergent hours they have. Our peds office is affiliated with a very good hospital in our area, so that was also important to us. We wanted to make sure that if we needed to see a specialist for any reason, that we would have access. It was a good ? to ask, especially because DD was born with special needs and we see many of the specialists when they visit the campus we go to.

thanks ladies!

rebecca.miller · June 2009

I am doing inteviews with Pediatricians. When you call you set up what is called a "meet and greet". There is no co-pay involved. It is usually like a 30-45 minute appointment where you get to ask them questions about their practice.

At first I didn't think these interviews were necessary, but aftering doing about three so far, it is amazing at how differently office are run.

Here are some quesitons I have found that are great insight into the doctor:

1. How are after hours emergencies handled?
2. Do they have separate appointment times or waiting rooms for well baby versus sick baby visits. I mean do you really want your baby in teh waiting room for the normal check up next to a kid with the flu?
3. Are they Certified with the Board of Pediatrics? I thought this was manditory, but apprently not... it actually required extra testing to get certified.
4. Are you going to be sent to an off site lab for blood work, immunizations, etc...
5. How many doctors could be treating your baby? I thought this was a good one, because doctor's can be scary for kids anyway, and having a different doctor every time can be emotional for a child.

The bump has a great list of questions that I use for all of my "meet and greets". I have done three and have yet to find a doctor that I like... here is the link:

https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/blogs/3rdtrimester/archive/2007/03/12/checklist-interviewing-a-pediatrician.aspx

A few other things to consider:

Retirement: if you meet the doctor and it appears they might be on the verge of retirement (age wise) then you might want to consider that too... because it means you will end up having to find another doctor in the near future.

Nursing Staff/Receptionist: I called one office to schedule and appointment, and I had to go through a long list of phone options before I got to the receptionist and then she was rude... I thought to myself "do I want to deal with this every time I need an appointment, or when the baby is sick and I am already stressed with having a sick baby?"

I hope this helps.

wingsfan524 · June 2009

When I had DS 5 years ago. I called the offices I was interested in and told them I was pregnant and wanted to meet with the doctors to discuss a few questions I had. They did not charge me a copay at all, but this was 5 years ago. Honestly, I only interviewed 2 practices and I love the one I chose.

magdusia · June 2009

rebecca.miller:
I am doing inteviews with Pediatricians. When you call you set up what is called a "meet and greet". There is no co-pay involved. It is usually like a 30-45 minute appointment where you get to ask them questions about their practice.
At first I didn't think these interviews were necessary, but aftering doing about three so far, it is amazing at how differently office are run.
Here are some quesitons I have found that are great insight into the doctor:
1. How are after hours emergencies handled?
2. Do they have separate appointment times or waiting rooms for well baby versus sick baby visits. I mean do you really want your baby in teh waiting room for the normal check up next to a kid with the flu?
3. Are they Certified with the Board of Pediatrics? I thought this was manditory, but apprently not... it actually required extra testing to get certified.
4. Are you going to be sent to an off site lab for blood work, immunizations, etc...
5. How many doctors could be treating your baby? I thought this was a good one, because doctor's can be scary for kids anyway, and having a different doctor every time can be emotional for a child.
The bump has a great list of questions that I use for all of my "meet and greets". I have done three and have yet to find a doctor that I like... here is the link:
https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/blogs/3rdtrimester/archive/2007/03/12/checklist-interviewing-a-pediatrician.aspx
A few other things to consider:
Retirement: if you meet the doctor and it appears they might be on the verge of retirement (age wise) then you might want to consider that too... because it means you will end up having to find another doctor in the near future.
Nursing Staff/Receptionist: I called one office to schedule and appointment, and I had to go through a long list of phone options before I got to the receptionist and then she was rude... I thought to myself "do I want to deal with this every time I need an appointment, or when the baby is sick and I am already stressed with having a sick baby?"
I hope this helps.

THIS IS GREAT! thanks!

it makes me feel less awkward about calling them.

cherrykat · June 2009

Thanks for the info! This is exactly what I was looking for as well.

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