How did you guys choose a pediatrician?

It is harder than I thought to pick a pediatrician. I was thinking to use one in the building where I go so I can make our appts together. Are there any suggested questions I should ask or signs I should look for since this is my first go round? Thanks for any help...

Picking a good pediactrician that you trust and can have a good relationship with is huge.  My 18 year old has had the same pediatrician nearly his whole life and I can't say enough good things about him and his entire group and office staff.

I chose him based on a recommendation of a very close friend.  I sat down and talked with him and his dad (they were the two doc's when we started going there).  They talked to me about their philosophies, etc.  I was impressed and have been ever since.

One thing I would recommend is to find out about hours, etc.  Our pedicatrician is open for "as needed" appts on Saturdays until noon- which has been great.  They don't make appts for this time, but if you need them in the am on Sat- someone is there for you to come in and see.

Also, don't think about just the first few years of your baby's life- think about how this Dr relates to school age kids and even teenagers.  While the past several years, we didn't need to go for things like ear infections, etc like when Spence was little- there were many other things that I needed him for.

Don't pick one without making an appointment to go meet some of the staff, dr's and see the clinic.

Good Luck!

Michelle

I first off found out which pediatritions my insurance covered, then called and interviewed a couple. I found a lady which I thought would work out well. Once my daughter was born, all the nurses kept saying she looked jaundiced, well the ped came in glanced at her and said "she's fine" and walked out. I was so pissed off at her attitude about it and not even acting as if she cared. This was around Christmas time, we were released from the hospital on Christmas Eve and the ped on call who came in to look at Ruby said she was definately jaundiced. He was so nice, explained everything clearly and so I just asked him if he would be her doctor and he said yes. That's how I found my daughters pediatrition.

First let me say that double appointments are really hard to do.  For one thing the baby will be wore out by the time the second appointment rolls around.  Also it's hard to know how far apart to schedule the appointments.  Unless you have a Dr. and a pediatrician that never run behind (does that exist lol).

First I picked the city I wanted the pediatrician to be in (I didn't want to use one in our hick town).
Next I checked with the insurance to see who was covered in that area.  There were two that in the location I wanted.   I then called both to set up an interview with them.  The first place said no problem, the second would not let me have an interview.   I would get to meet the Dr. at the first appointment.   Also, if I called the after hours line and it wasn't a true emergency then I was charged $30.  

When I met had the interview I had a list of questions front and back. Dr. Feld very patiently answered all my questions.  When I left the office I had his cell phone and pager # and was told to call anytime I needed to.   Over the past two years I have had to call a few times.  It has saved me a couple of trips to the ER.

He has no other Dr.s in his practice, but there are several other PA's (I love all of them too).  At first I wanted to go to a practice that had several Dr.'s that way I would always be able to get in the same day with a sick appointment.   There are times where I've had to see the PA instead of the Dr., but I've always been able to get a same day appointment.

The most important thing is for you to be comfortable with the Dr. 

I hope this helps and you find a great Dr.!
Amy

I've decided to go with a family practice. I have been going there for years and love all the Drs in the practice. I have always been able to get a same day "sick" appt and their on call staff i*****tual for those after hours calls too. They have evening hours and it is convenient to home and work and where if I have to put the baby in daycare where that will be  as well. I have been debating for months on what to do - a ped vs family Dr and after a long talk with my Mom and a few of my Aunt's decided on the family practice. they have the specialized infant equiptment (scales etc) and are prepared to handle anything my baby could need. If for some reason my baby has a special need that I feel would be better handled by a pediatrician I'll make that call then.

Good luck!
Liz

One thing you could do is ask the nurses at the hospital where you plan to deliver. Those of us who work in the nursery/NICU know how the docs act behind the scenes, and can tell *****ally cares and who is just doing a job.

Thanks for the wonderful suggestions. I didn't think about the timing of appts. issue so that's a good point. I think I will check with the nurses and see. We start our childbirth classes on Monday and it is 4 weeks long (2 hours one day a week) and will end with a labor and delivery tour, meeting the nurses in NICU and the regular units. Maybe I can get some insight then. I had planned to ask questions and meet with or interview the doc first so it sounds like my ideas (minus the same time appt. thing) were pretty close to right. Thanks again guys.

Some things you want to remember when talking to the docs is that you want what you believe and what they believe to line up. Like if you are choosing to breastfeed or delay vaxes, you want to know that the doctor is going to be on board with that, this way when the time comes you don't have to struggle with getting them to do it the way you want.

And this might sound like a funny thing to consider, but the age of the doctor is sometimes very important. Alot of the older doctors still believe that outdated information and practices are ok, and many times they are not and the advice that comes from this type of doctor can be harmful. Also if they are young and fresh from school, chances are they don't have any children of their own and this can really skew the perspective that they have on the parenting relationship.

I ADORE my ped's, seriously LOVE them. They are a middle aged married couple with seven kids, they understand my fears and frustrations and are willing to let me do things the way I am comfortable, they are encouraging and warm and willing to work with whatever plan you have for your child. I really wish I could clone them and send them all over place.

The other thing is to go with your gut, even if the doc comes highly reccomended but you feel they aren't a good fit with your life or your personality, move on. You want to feel good about calling them for things, not worried about what they are going to think about you or worrying about feeling uncomfortable asking them "silly" questions or expressing your fears and concerns with them.

I had a few lemons before I struck gold with my current doctors.

i am very lucky. MY pediatrician was brand spanking new when my mother delivered me at the hospital durring a blizzard. He was the only pediatrician in the hospital because of the storm, mom hadent chosen one and so he became my doc by default. I am officially his first pediatric patient lol. He was awsome and as kids me and my sisters chose to still go to the pediatrician untill we started college. It did feel a LITTLE funny being grown and sitting in an office of toddlers and babies lol but we didnt care. So my pediatricain is now my sons pediatrician and will be new baby's pediatrician. Its great as i have over a 30 year relationship with the doc and he knows my whole family.

i picked my pediatrician..... he also cared for my brothers... so i just thought well... hes the one LOL.. 14 years later hes jaysons dr.. and will be jaylyns dr... hes a middle aged man ( about 40) so not to old school and not brand new... he has a son with autism and 2 other kids