| When we found out
that we were going to be parents, one of our first tasks was to find a pediatrician.
Most books we read recommended interviewing several doctors before choosing one.
While the recommendation sounded like a great idea, the reality was that neither
we nor most of the pediatricians we talked to had the time to spend in a lengthy
interview.
We found our pediatrician through
recommendations from trusted friends. Several friends and acquaintances with children
provided recommendations. Two different pediatricians received multiple recommendations.
We also asked our friends why they recommended their pediatrician. This allowed
us to see if the pediatrician's style and theory were compatible with what we
wanted for our child.
The pediatrician's
staff is also very important. We ruled out several pediatricians because our friends
said the doctor was great, but that the staff and nurses were difficult. We chose
our doctor over others because of the high quality of his staff and the easy availability
of a nurse to help answer our questions.
Some
pediatrician's offices have nurses available during normal business hours to answer
questions. We found it very reassuring to be able to get an expert's opinion when
we weren't sure if our baby was sick enough to warrant a doctor's appointment.
We strongly recommend you find a practice that you can feel comfortable calling
when you are worried about your child's health.
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