I present a discussion about Pedi's to our June Mamas

thatoneredhead · February 2013

So this came up in my circle and I was just wondering what June12 thought about it- Does a pedi's having children make him/her a better one?

Personally, I love that my pedi can add personal experience to his medical knowledge. I wouldnt care if he didnt, but I like that he does.

Thoughts?

AliciaS1411 · February 2013

I agree with you. But for real, I'm only commenting to say that your siggy pic is the most freaking adorable thing ever!

Meery82 · February 2013

Oh, I totally agree with you. I'm sure pedis can be great and never have had kids, but experience is a tough but effective teacher that cannot be replaced in the classroom. Children can be a mystery, especially ones as young as ours who are unable to communicate specifically what the problem is. It's comforting to know they are someone who has been in your shoes. It gives them a whole different, non-clinical perspective. That's one of the reasons I love our pedi. She has 3 kids, who aren't a whole lot older than mine. She's young enough to remember the infant stages, but old enough to know what she's doing.

DawnLilly · February 2013

Our Pedi has 5 kids and his wife is a doula. I think it makes a huge difference. At our 4 month he said he didn't care what other pediatricians say, that all five of his kids had a low grade fever with teething. He also said that as a Dr. he is supposed to push the flu shot, but as a dad he told me that the "real" flu covered by the shot had yet to be seen in our area and that because DS is not in daycare it was a decision that if I chose not to he would not push. DH and I like him so much because he talks to us and advises us both as a pedi and as a dad.

doxgirl · February 2013

My preference is to have pedi that is a parent. Ours has four kids. I appreciate the real life perspective he gives. It is very comforting that he can share his experience with our same struggles.

mylittlesunshine · February 2013

Another vote for a pedi that has children.

unaveragejane · February 2013

Absolutely, I prefer my pedi to have children, just like I prefer a gyno who has a vagina. If you have one, you can understand things from a firsthand perspective.

That said, our first pedi has a bunch of kids, but they're old enough that he now also has grandkids. He is conservative and old-school, which I liked, but he is also not very compassionate about FTM concerns b/c he as been around so long. My mother absolutely hated him b/c of how roughly he handled DS when he was just 4 weeks old. We switched to a different pedi who has kids about middle school age. Whether it is age or personality, he is much more compassionate. I'm just afraid we're going to butt heads about the MMR vaccine in a few months. (sigh)

stepper1725 · February 2013

That's a really interesting question, I've never thought about whether or not my pedi has children. I'm assuming yes, but I honestly don't know...

What sold me was his demeanor. He's very calm, nice, relaxed. He knows that first time parents can have a lot of anxiety about things, but he never writes us off as being worried for nothing. Also, he's amazing with DD. When we first brought her in at her 3 day appointment, she was crying. He picked her up & examined her, talking to her the whole time. She stopped crying immediately and was basically mesmerized by him. So, I guess it doesn't matter to me whether he has kids, just that he's good with DD and provides good care.

acbfreire · February 2013

unaveragejane:
Absolutely, I prefer my pedi to have children, just like I prefer a gyno who has a vagina. If you have one, you can understand things from a firsthand perspective.

LOL. This

jess9802 · February 2013

I always want a good clinician, first and foremost. I have a male OB and had a male gynecologist beforehand and thought they were fantastic doctors. Our pediatrician has children, but that did not factor into our decision to choose her. Rather, I worked on a possible wrongful death case; she had been the pediatrician that went to bat for the child against an insurance provider who denied coverage for treatment, and I was impressed with her dedication and advocacy for her patient.

henrytviii · February 2013

I don't know if pedi has children so I guess it doesn't matter to me. What I like about him is that he is older (late 60's) so he has a lot of life and work experience but seems very up to date, he's gentle and kind to my LO and he supports/evaluates us an individuals rather than just going off charts/milestone goals. I saw a women who was a parent and told me about her children for a urgent care visit and our parenting styles clashed horribly, I left almost in tears.

Our regular pedi also started his career as a teacher. He spent a good amount of time in our 2 month appointment talking about boys in school and how nationally they are falling behind girls and what I can do along with my DH to address this as we raise our son. I liked that he was looking beyond the strictly medical side of his work. I think we were red flagged because my husband in an athlete rather than having a traditional career, so he was worried about us not valuing education. Funny because DH is also the biggest nerd I know and does spreadsheets for fun but I was happy he picked up on that in our forms.

violajack · February 2013

I actually don't know whether or not my pedi has children. She kind of reminds me of everyone's favorite auntie, and she genuinely likes kids. She doesn't give me parenting advice. If I need parenting advice, I read books by experts in whatever area I need advice on, ask other parents, or ask at a child development class for babies and caregivers that we go to at a local college.

I like that my pedi does her own stuff. Visits start with us sitting down for a chat in her office. Then we go an exam room where she does all the growth measurements. She also does all the vaccines herself.

thatoneredhead · February 2013

Thanks Alicia! Your little guy looks just like his dad from the pics Ive seen- so cute!

I agree with PP's about life experience being really important.

Ive always been very open to parenting advice from my pedi and ask him lots of questions not exactly related to health topics. He loves babywearing, encouraged me to breastfeed when everyone else, including me, had given up, and gave me the sweetest "lecture" when he saw me tearing up when it hadnt worked. I like his style and dont get a ton of advice IRL (horrible problem- I know)

joleine · February 2013

our first pedi, 3 years ago, had kids and sucked

our current pedi is a young gay man without kids and is an amazing doctor.

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