Choosing a trustworthy pediatrician is not an easy task. Parents need to spend some time weighing all their options before committing to the one who best suits the needs of their child. This is where an interview with potential doctors can be useful. By following these tips, parents can feel confident that their child is receiving the best available care.
Decide Which Health Issues Matter Most
Parents need to take some personal inventory before planning out their pediatrician interviews. Topics such as opinions about vaccines, medicine vs. holistic remedies and child-raising style preferences should all be taken into consideration. Deciding where a couple stands in relation to different child health care issues is an important first step in finding a doctor with the same values.
Draft a List of Potential Pediatricians
At this stage in the planning process, gather as many names as possible. Ask friends, family members and coworkers for the names of their pediatrician. Parents should refer to their health insurance's website or provider book and get names of pediatricians in their area. Pregnant women should ask their OB/GYN or general care provider if there are any pediatricians that they can recommend. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) also offers patient referrals, if needed. Make a list of all gathered names as well as their addresses, phone numbers and how they were referred.
Questions to Ask Potential Pediatricians
After deciding where they stand in terms of their health preferences and compiling a working list of potential doctors, parents can start creating a pediatrician questionnaire. It is best to draft a template style questionnaire that can be copied and filled in for each different doctor. This ensures that all potential doctors are asked the same questions. Make sure to leave space on top of each questionnaire to list contact name/number of each doctor. Here are some starter questions every parent should ask when interviewing pediatricians:
- Do you accept my health insurance plan?
- What are the fees and co-pays for office visits?
- What are your hospital affiliations?
- What are the office hours?
- Who handles emergencies during nights/weekends/holidays?
- Do you talk to parents over the phone or via email?
- How many other pediatricians are in the practice?
- Do the other in-practice pediatricians accept my health insurance?
- Are you a board-certified pediatrician?
- How many years have you been in practice?
- What are your professional affiliations?
- What are your feelings regarding: breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding, circumcision, sleep solutions, antibiotics, immunizations and vaccines? (Add any other topic that is of particular importance.)
- What is your well-baby visit schedule like? How frequently would we be coming in for check-ups?
After parents formulate a list of important questions, start making calls from the list of potential doctors. Decide if an over-the-phone interview is acceptable or whether an in-office visit is preferred.
After all the interviews are complete, parents can narrow down their choices as much as possible. Feel free to approach the finalists with any additional questions that may help solidify a decision. Remember that as a parent, one of the most important decisions you will have to make is who to entrust your child's health to.
Lisa Rufle - If I had to describe myself in one word, it would easily be: curious. So as a natural extension of my curiosity, reading is my life's ...
