Questions for Pediatrician Interview

[AmyG89]

Is it normal to interview your pediatrician? I was referred to a pediatrician from a few friends of mine and when I called to see if he was accepting new patients they told me to come in for an interview to make sure we were comfortable with the doctor. The interview isn't until September but I guess I just need to know what sort of questions I should ask him? Does anyone have a list of questions that they could share with me? My son is due 11/1/11.

Thanks Ladies!

[NicMom]

It's not a bad idea to interview them first. With my daughter I didn't  do that and I ended up having to switch drs when she was only 2 weeks old because the lady made me so mad. I still go to the same practice, but refuse to see that dr ever again.

Some of the basics are good to know about the office.
What's the procedure to make an appointment?
How long does it take to get sick kid visits scheduled (ie do you wait a day or two before seeing the dr or will they get you in the same day)?
Are they available to answer medical questions on the phone and if so what are the hours?
How does their billing department work, pay copays up front do they work with your insurance? Are the billing people in house (this I like to know because sometimes they make mistakes and it's easier to sort out if it's not a 3rd party)
What is their well child schedule? Not all offices are the same, how often do they like to see the baby in the first 2 years?
Do they have a lactation consultant that they work with?

When it comes to the dr it's nice to just chat with them for a few minutes and feel out their personality.

In my opinion I don't like working with young pediatricians. They always seem to order too many tests and not know what's going on as much as an older dr would. That's just been my experience with my two children. I like drs that are closer to 50+ yrs old and have kids of their own. It seems to make a difference when they've gone through this same thing. I switched up drs with my daughter because the first one we had lectured me about letting the baby sleep on me one night. She had horrible reflux and was born 5 weeks early so for the first two weeks we only slept 1 to 2 hours at a time. The baby ended up in the hospital for losing too much weight. The day she came home she slept on my belly for 4 hours straight and the dr acted like I put koolaid in her bottle or something.

[Michele, Katy, TX]

I have never been asked to do that, but I think it's great that the doctor cares that much what his patients think.  Better to know now, his philosophies on things, than find out later that you just don't agree with him, or simply don't like his personality.  

I wish I could help you w/ questions.  I am pretty "standard" as far as how I care for my kids.  I mean, I immunize and that type of thing so as long as I feel my kids are genuinely cared for, and I feel I am being listened to as the parent with my concerns, etc., I am generally pretty happy.

Oh, I would find out if you will be seen same day, no matter what, if you are calling for a sick visit.  I had a ped once (not for long either), and every time I would call w/ one of my kids sick, they didn't have room for me that day.  "Um, we are talking a baby here and it can't wait.  And no 2 days from now is not sufficient."  Needless to say, she wasn't my ped for long.  For sick patients, they should see you the same day.  My ped now, ALWAYS sees us the same day and I never have to wait.  So that is a big one for me.  If I think of anything else, I will let you know :)

[LosingMyMindInGA]

I've never interviewd one, but I think it's an EXCELLANT idea.  I would probably ask questions similar to the following (and you can adjust the questions for your personal beliefs)

1) How long have you been practicing?
2) have you ever had any action taken against you? (Board sanctions, malpractice etc) These CAN be verified through your local licensing agency.
3) What are your feelings about vaccinations?
4) How do you determine when to give an antibiotic? (too many peds will dose them out for just about EVERYTHING)
5) What is the average time you spend with each patient?  
6) Does your office overlap appointment times or stick with a standard spacing?
(Say they allot 20 minutes per appt.  Do they schedul appts every 20 minutes or every 10-15 minutes so several patients times overlap?  the latter usually causes major delays and less time spent with patients)
7) Do you have to send out for routine lab work or can you do things like CBC's and strep cultures in office?
8) Do you have an after hours emergency or nurse line that can be called?
9) What hospitals do you have priveledges with?


I can't think of anything else right off hand, but I WOULD make a point of asking other parents in the waiting room how they feel about the doctor.  Parents will usually be honesta bout whether or not they like a pediatrician and what they do and don't like about them.