Pediatricians

caffeinenut · September 2016

Hey, I was hoping some second time moms, or even first time moms who know more than me, could help here. When should I pick a pediatrician? Do I have to do it before the baby is born? How do I pick one? Is there a specific process I need to follow?

dmontgo · September 2016

Not a STM, but I've picked one already. It's not too scary!

I did it now because I have more time to talk to them about their philosophies and read reviews, etc. Interviews with them are helpful in knowing if you click or not. I took a list of questions to ask, and when I found the pediatrician that worked for me, she gave me her card and said when baby is born, let the staff know she is the pediatrician and she will come to the hospital everyday while we're there, and then we will schedule for the 6-week visit. She provides breastfeeding support too, which I think is awesome. Until the baby is born, nothing to really do--if you don't have a pediatrician chosen, they will get a random on-call pediatrician to check out the baby, so either way someone will look at the baby. Interviews were very helpful for me!

Hope this helps!

SarahF8611 · September 2016

You probably should do it before the baby is born, they will want to see the baby 3 days after being born and you don't want to be picking one then! Someone from our practice came to the hospital as well to do a newborn check right away (although I know not all do this). Our practice has a "meet us" night for potential parents once a month where you can go learn about the practice, ask questions and fill out paperwork (if you want). If you don't have any specific questions and don't care to meet them before, it's as easy as calling them, letting them know you're pregnant and want to use them. They will get you in the system so when you call when the baby is born to set up that early appointment, it's easy.

We asked a few questions including their vaccination policy (it was important to us that all children were vaccinated at the practice), walk-in hours, continuation of care with one pediatrician, if they had an LC on staff and that's pretty much it.

jennbaylor12 · September 2016

Our hospital policy is not to discharge the mom/baby until a pediatrician is listed on the discharge paperwork so we had that prior to delivering DS.

I will say that no matter how much you prep, sometimes you just don't know if it's a good fit until you start seeing them. We toured offices, interview providers, etc and choose our pedi before DS was born; their on-call doc saw DS (he was born on a Sat) and coordinated the circumcision in the hospital. When we went for the follow-up appt two days post-discharge we had a terrible experience from the front desk all the way through and left saying we would not be returning in 2 weeks for the next visit! We immediately came home, did internet research and picked someone random that we absolutely love, has been seeing DS since he was 2wks old and will see this LO as well.
So, pretty much like everything surrounding having a baby, flexibility is key!! :-)

DiFazette · September 2016

Things to ask:
-vaccine policy
-lactation consultants on staff (this is important if you want to attempt to nurse)
- sick vs. well waiting room - keeps sick/healthy apart
- what hospital system they are affiliated with/priveledges
-Off hours/weekend availability
-on call nurse/doctor for phone calls and what the charge is
-how quickly can they accommodate same day sick appts? This one is hard because they can really tell you anything.

Those are my big questions - the rest will be fit/feel of the doctors and office.

Mamax2 · September 2016

I say go ahead and find one. If you have friends with lo's in your area, ask for their opinions. A lot of the pediatrician offices in my area have a meet and great night. Between that and our friends recommendations, that's how we found our pedi for DD. We love him, and are so thankful we found him. He is so excited for our little man as well. @DiFazette has listed some great questions to ask!

karmba · September 2016

FTM here, I found our pediatrician a few weeks ago based on friends' recommendations. Depending on your area and how popular some of the doctors are, it's a good idea to at least start calling around and see who is accepting new patients. Our practice frequently comes up on the "best of" lists for the area so they only a few doctors accepting new patients. I didn't interview because their website is very clear on the type of questions @DiFazette listed and my specific doctor was a personal rec from a good friend. They sent us a packet to fill out & return and there's nothing else to do until he's born!

zubenescamali · September 2016

You have some time but should start looking. You don't need to ensure they have priveledges where you deliver but it is a nice bonus. Most offices have new parent consultation appointments. Should be no cost. We chose ours originally for their high patient satisfaction rating, evening hours and weekend clinic hours. If you deliver without a pediatrician, the hospital group will set you up in their practice after discharge.

beff12 · September 2016

Everyone else has already given great advice, but I thought I'd mention our pediatrician's way of handling newborns. We called them a couple months before DD1 was born (for this one, I just mentioned it when I was at her two year checkup) to get in their system. They instructed us to call when the baby was born in order to schedule the first appointment. I think the hospital actually ended up notifying them for us, which made it super easy!

Want a personalized experience?

Pediatricians

Re: Pediatricians

Choose Another Board

Search Boards