Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Pregnancy 101: Baby Doctor

So I have to choose a pediatrician.  I have NO idea how to do this.  I went to Kaiser's website and looked at the pictures of the pediatrician's and read their bio's but what does this really tell me?  A whole lot of nothing in my opinion.  I'm looking for someone really specific too.  I don't want someone who just tell me that "this" is what is commonly done and expect that to work for me.  I want someone who is going to take the time to explain procedures and why they work and why they recommend it. I'm not looking to do things like everyone else just because that's how it is done (I know.  So typical first-born-type-a).  But how in the world can I tell that from a PICTURE and a 300 character bio? 

So I need you folks to weigh in for me.  Especially you new moms.  How did you go about choosing a pediatrician for your kids?  And did you got through a couple before you found the one that fits?  It all seems a bit overwhelming to me right now.  I mean, I'm RESPONSIBLE.  I am responsible for another person's life and health and making the proper choices for them.  I don't want to be the one that screws that up!  So any advice at all will do!

11 comments:

Matt said...

Tip: Avoid, with a PLAGUE BIG clinics such as Kaiser. You will never get the one on one care and establish a HISTORY with your doctor. Find a local clinic. Find one where the doctor owns the clinic. Try yelp?

Amber said...

Talk to your OB. They might be able to offer you some insight based on the relationship you two have developed during your pregnancy.
I had the benefit of having a family member who works at my Kaiser location... so I had some inside scoop. I know my mom went through trial and error at Kaiser with us when we were younger until she found one she/we liked. You will know very early on if they are a good match for you!

Christen said...

All I know is that Kaiser is not the best hospital. This I learned from family members who are nurses, my mom's experience of having a misdiagnosed 8 year old cancerous tumor, a misdiagnosed appendicitis (said it was cramps for 2 weeks until she went into shock), over medicated my sister (pediatrics)...blah blah blah. From a nurse's perspective, ... See MoreKaiser assigns nurses a dangerous level of patients to care for, as well as doctors. All these experiences are in the Sacramento area though. Probably doesn't help you, sorry.

Sherah said...

My 6 yr old was hositalized the first time at 3 wks old and several times since then and the whole time I've had Kaiser. I hate it! She has been misdiagnosed so many times. I have literally been told "we have no idea what's wrong with her. Just take her home and try to keep her comfortable til more symptoms appear." That was when she had 105 fever... See More. I could go on and on. My intent is not to scare you, just to warn you. Hopefully your baby will be in perfect health and you won't have to spend much time there.

Sherah said...

Aslo, she has seen specialists in San Jose, Sac, Oakland, and SF. Kaiser was awful in every one of those places. She had a colonoscopy and endoscopy and ended up in the hospital afterwards hemmoraghing because they accidentally cut her her colon.

Dawnita said...

I would talk to other parents who you have a lot in common with in your area and get some feedback from them about their experience. If you are looking for more alternative medicine practice then find some parents of the same mindset and talk to them about their experience. That is how we found our pediatrician. You can't do it from looking at ... See Morea picture and reading a bio. Also in our area a lot of pediatrician practices will let you do an interview with them. You can set up an appointment to meet them and talk to them about how they practice medicine and their ideas about things that you feel strongly about to see if they will be supportive of your ideas and methodology that you want to apply when raising your child. We interivewed several and we LOVE our current pediatrician who we have had since birth for both the boys. Good Luck!

Bree said...

Thanks for the help guys. I don't have any choice (at least for the next year) but to use Kaiser though. We had Kaiser when we were kids and my parents have always loved the care they got there. Once I got my own insurance I didn't have Kaiser and I always loved my doctor's but we use my husband's now and Kaiser is really the best option. Guess I'll just have to do trial and error!

Melissa said...

Hey Bree.. I work at a Pediatricians office and we do what is called "Meet and Greet" its for new parents and they can schedule a 10 to 20 min appt at our office.. to meet the docs.. we dont bill insurance or charge the pt for it.. its 100% free and you can meet the doc and ask any questions you might have.. like.. do you have flexible office hours? whats the likelihood I can get in on the same day if I need to? Can I see the same doc every visit or do you just schedule with whomever is available? Is there a triage or nursing dept. I can call if I have basic questions (like is the baby spitting up to much? he's not eating enough etc etc..) Do you have an after hours number I can call in case of emergency.. call the docs you have in your kaiser listing and ask if they do meet and greets for new parents.. if so Id jump on it so you can catch a vibe and that way you just have to tell them at the hospital who your pediatrician is...hope that helps and I hope they do those in Cali!!

Matt said...

we love out doctor because he knows us. there's a relationship. and we trust and know that he'll do EVERYTHING in his power to calm our minds about anything we might be experiencing. that's priceless.

bekah said...

I asked my OB who she takes her kids to, and that just so happens to be the same one my sister takes her kids to, so thats who I chose. I figured any doctor that my doctor trusts with their child must be worth their salt you know?

B and Fs first baby said...

My OB gave me a list of doctors they recomend and I'm planning to go with one in the same building as them... They have a 'meet and great' in 2 weeks which will give me time to tour their office and ask questions.
Overall, I trust my OB's opinion and figure that if things don't work out, then I can try to find a better doctor going off friend recomendations!