- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Natural Birth
Interviewing a Pediatrician
I have an interview with a pediatrician tomorrow and I'm wondering what are some things I should ask or touch on? I am looking for someone who is open to alternative medicine, is well informed on vaccines and the debate going on with them (I'm pretty sure I'm not going to do them and don't want problems) and encourages breastfeeding. With everything else I'm drawing a complete blank!
Thanks!
-Laurie
My 36 week photo
Jared Ryu
Jared Ryu
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Interviewing a Pediatrician
GL finding a pedi with those ideas.
I wanted everything you mentioned and more. So I asked all those questions and then also asked about: office hours, last appointment time (different from office hours), acute visit slots, if I will see the same practitioner each visit, how far in advance I need to schedule regular visits, etc.
I'm also having a home birth so I asked each pedi how comfortable they were with this idea. In one interview there was complete silence on the pedi's end. Ha. That said it all. Interview over.
We ended up choosing a pediatrician that is a 50 minute drive from our house. Not ideal, but she met all our requirements and is 100% on the same page as us. The hunt for someone open to alternative care is really challenging, but we are proof that it can be found! GL!!!!!
ETA: spelling
Yup, have to agree. Though I do know one in my area...anyhoo, check with family practitioners. They are usually a bit more flexible with vaccines. But you'll be hard-pressed to find a doctor who recommends no vaccines - even the hippie ped I know who barely does them, still recommends at least *some* of them. Or someone who practices integrative medicine, we had a doctor who did when DS1 was a baby (full disclosure: we do vax, though on a somewhat delayed schedule).
DS2 - Oct 2010 (my VBAC baby!)
C&P'ing here from an older post I wrote, hopefully the format's not wonky:
Are any evening/weekend hours available? Is there another physician who covers for her when she is out?
Which hospitals does she have admitting privileges/take rounds at?
What is her current waiting period or next opening for both well and ill appointments? (This gives you a hint as to how busy, popular, and available the pedi is.)
What procedures to they do in-office? Do they staff some of their own bloodwork/labs? Do they have an on-staff x-ray tech?
What is her opinion on things like CIO, starting solids, co-sleeping/bedsharing, breastfeeding, etc. If your pedi doesn't agree with you on these things it's not a dealbreaker, but it's important that you feel comfortable talking her about these things.
Antibiotics-- does she favor an interventionist or a wait-and-see approach?
What arrangements does the office make for expenses not covered by insurance?
Are there separate ill visit and well visit waiting rooms? (This actually isn't the case at my pedi's office, but I know that some people prefer it.)
What kinds of medical staff does the office use (RN, LPN, PA, Medical Assistants, Nurse Practictioners, Phlebotomists)? Are there any lactation consultants on-staff?
Does someone cover the phones after-hours? Do the phones forward to the hospital?
I agree with finding some like minded moms from your area that can give recs. I am in a FB group with moms in my area that are "crunchy" (cloth diapering is kind of what brought them together). There are women all over the spectrum in that group though, many that do vax (we will), some that don't, one that surprised me recently had a 4 year old that had NEVER seen a doctor (had to at this point for a UTI).
the vax issue is going to be the big one you run into as very few doctors will sign on for NO vaccines.
Gretchen Evie, born 7/8/2012 at 35w5d
No vaccines....seriously? Unless you live in Amish country or are open to an African witch doctor, I think you're out of luck.