Whether you’re expecting your first baby or seeking a new doctor for an older child, finding the right physician is important, as they will help set the stage for future health. With the rich landscape of medical care available in Northeast Ohio, comparing options can be overwhelming. Consider the following important characteristics when choosing a doctor for your children.
1. Personality
Whether you prefer a doctor with a vibrant sense of humor or one who’s a little more cut-and-dry, finding one with a personality that meshes with your own — and your child’s — is important. Gauge your comfort level and pay attention to your gut feeling when meeting a new doctor. “You should ‘click’ with your pediatrician; he or she should be someone with whom you are comfortable asking questions or raising concerns,” says Dr. Kathleen Grady, a pediatrician at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Partners in Pediatrics office in Westlake. “You should feel like your child’s pediatrician really listens to you. You should trust your pediatrician and feel good about asking and taking his or her advice.”
2. Common Ground
No matter what your stance is regarding vaccination and antibiotic use, for example, it’s important you ask a prospective doctor about their views on such important medical topics. Make sure you choose a physician whose views are in line with your own, advises Dr. Mark Evans from Akron Children’s Hospital Pediatrics in Brecksville. “Ask questions about how they approach medical issues that are important to you,” he says, adding, “then gauge the doctor’s personality and how they react to questions.”
3. Support Staff
After you choose a doctor, you’ll likely spend more time interacting with support staff — nurses, office staff, schedulers, etc. — than the physician themselves, so it’s important that you feel comfortable with these people. “When you go in for a prenatal visit, show up a few minutes early just to see how things are going and so you can watch the staff interacting with patients and parents,” Evans says. “Ask them questions and see how much they are willing to help.”
4. Convenience
Consider location, office hours, parking and procedures when weighing one doctor versus another. “First, ensure practical details are satisfied,” recommends Grady. “Is the pediatrician accepting new patients? Is the pediatrician covered by your insurance plan? Is the location convenient — not only geographically acceptable, but is parking readily available and are ancillary services such as lab and radiology available nearby?” Determine which aspects are most important to you. “For example, you may not mind having to take an elevator to get to the office as long as there are separate sick and well child waiting rooms,” she adds.
5. Expertise
While all doctors have completed medical school and a residency, there are some differences regarding training. For example, a pediatrician who has been certified by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) has passed a rigorous exam following medical school and residency training, Grady notes. “The ABP requires all Board certified Pediatricians to be engaged actively in maintaining their certification through various educational and practice improving activities, as well as taking re-certifying exams at regular intervals,” she says. “However, a pediatrician may practice medicine without being board certified.”Grady also recommends a pediatrician who practices evidence-based medicine (medical care that has been scientifically proven to be effective) and best practices or standard of care medicine (what is regarded by the pediatric and medical professional community as appropriate medical care in a particular situation).
6. Communication
Since doctors often need to discuss complicated medical information, finding one who can put concepts into laymen’s terms is helpful, according to Dr. Melissa Seifried, a Cleveland Clinic Children’s pediatrician. “Your pediatrician may be the Albert Einstein of medicine, but if that knowledge is trapped in a maze of technical terms you can’t understand, what good will that knowledge do for your child?” she says. “A good pediatrician doesn’t just ‘know’ medical science, but also ‘knows how’ to navigate medical knowledge in a way you can understand.”
7. Availability
Parents often think it is easier to go to an urgent care center and see an unfamiliar physician than to get an appointment with their own pediatrician, according to Seifried. “There are a number of pediatricians who reserve spots in the schedules for ‘same day’ sick visits so that your child can see a familiar face, even on short notice,” she says. Also, there are often times when parents have questions that might not seem to warrant an appointment. “In these situations, it is nice to be able to relay messages through nurses or use an electronic messaging system like MyChart,” Seifried explains. “If your pediatrician is a reliable communicator, you will be able to take full advantage of these resources and can take comfort in the fact that when you have urgent questions, they will be answered in a timely manner.”
8. Interaction
It’s important to see how a prospective doctor interacts with your child — particularly in the cases of older children and teens. “Your pediatrician should engage directly with your child (rather than ignoring your child until the examination part of the visit),” advises Grady. “For older children or teens, it is important that they are also comfortable with this pediatrician.”
Evans suggests bringing an older child along to meet the doctor. “With a teen, the physician should treat them as the primary patient — meet with them first and then talk to the parent. It’s going to be their doctor, so you want the child to trust them and get along with them.”
When to Start Your Search
For expectant parents, finding a pediatrician is one of dozens of items on the to-do list. While it’s a good idea to begin thinking about the subject early on in a pregnancy, comparing doctors and going on prenatal visits are generally done during the third trimester.
“As soon as they know they’re pregnant, parents should start talking to neighbors and friends about which doctors their kids see,” says Dr. Mark Evans from Akron Children’s Hospital Pediatrics in Brecksville. “If the people you know and like prefer a particular physician, you probably will, too. You also can check online reviews from reputable sites like Healthgrades.”
After that initial research, Evans recommends scheduling prenatal visits to prospective physician offices between 30 and 35 weeks of pregnancy.
“Even before your baby is born, your pediatrician may have valuable advice for you that could help your baby’s prenatal development,” says Dr. Melissa Seifried, a Cleveland Clinic Children’s pediatrician. “As a result, it is hard to think of times when it is ‘too soon’ to go for a ‘meet the pediatrician’ visit.”
