5 TIPS FOR FINDING THE RIGHT PEDIATRICIAN

5 Tips to Finding the Right Pediatrician (1)

Finding a pediatrician who provides the best care for your child while “clicking” with you is important but often challenging.  You won’t go wrong in you follow these five tips for finding the right pediatrician for your child!

  1. Ask Around – One of the best ways to find a good pediatrician is to ask your friends with kids who they would refer.  It is also beneficial to check google reviews to see what complaints or compliments others have about the practice/doctor.
  2. Accessibility – I believe that I should be able to spend more than 5 minutes (if needed) with my children’s doctor.  I also believe that I should be able to reach my doctor by telephone after hours or give him/her a direct message during office hours and expect a call back.  This seemingly obvious convenience was quite hard for me to find. These days, offices often make you go through a middle man (aka medical assistant) instead of speaking directly with the physician.
  3. Staff – For two years I had a pediatrician who I adored.  He answered questions thoroughly and was great with my children.  Unfortunately his staff was awful.  They didn’t record pertinent information in my chart or ask the doctor about a scary situation, and that contributed some major health issues for my daughter.  I had to inform the pediatrician that I could no longer take my children to him because his staff was consistently incompetent.
  4. Ease of Appointments – It is important to find an office where it is easy to make and change appointments.  It is also helpful if the clinic has after hour care or same-day sick appointments.
  5. Resources – My wonderful pediatrician has numerous resources as handouts in office and on the clinic website.  There is everything from sick care to parenting advice.  I love having those doctor tips and tricks available to browse.

It is extremely important to me that I have a caring, in- tune doctor taking care of my precious little ones.  Luckily after following these tips and testing out a few doctors, I found a pediatrician who fit the bill and couldn’t be happier!  Good luck in your search for the right pediatrician!

6 Comments

  • Ashley says:

    I looove these tips! It is SO important to find a pediatrician you love and trust!

  • I like that you mentioned the importance of having an accessible pediatrician in case an appointment needs to be rescheduled. Parents having busy schedules and things have the tendency to come up. Having a pediatric doctor that is will to work with schedules is a wonderful attribute.

    • Melissa says:

      That is so true! I can’t believe how many doctors don’t allow a patient to speak directly to him/her on the phone. As a care provider, a doctor needs to be accessible! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  • Sam Wilkins says:

    I like how you mentioned that a pediatrician who provided pamphlets for other related services such as parenting advice or day care was able to make things easier for you. My sister is pregnant and is concerned about looking into pediatricians. Maybe she should take a glance at the pamphlets at various offices for some information.

  • Ashley Turns says:

    I like your advice to find a pediatrician who makes it easy to change appointments around. My husband and I have just moved so I am looking for a fantastic new doctor that we will be able to take our kids to. Since kids are always unpredictable, I will definitely be looking for a pediatrician that is willing to move appointments around.

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