Being a parent comes with a multitude of challenging responsibilities. Among these is to ensure your child constantly enjoys an optimal state of health and development from infancy all the way until they reach adulthood.
An essential component of fulfilling this responsibility is making sure you’re working with the right pediatrician for your child’s care. However, with nearly as many as 60,000 pediatricians in the United States, finding the right one can be daunting, confusing, and time-consuming.
Here are a few, simple tips to help you streamline your search for the right pediatrician for your child.
Start your search during your pregnancy.
It can take time to find a pediatrician who is right for your child. It, therefore, proves prudent to start your search early: during your pregnancy. This gives you time to do your research and make a very well-informed decision—sans the rush.
Hospitals typically request details of your pediatrician when you check in to deliver your baby, so ensuring you already have one whom you are happy with is an important part of getting adequately prepared for the birth of your child.
Ask the people you trust.
It can help to get recommendations from people you trust: your family members and friends.
Your primary care doctor and obstetrician are also excellent referral sources. Ask them for a list of in-network pediatricians. This way, you can ensure that you will pay a lower cost-sharing.
Do your homework.
When finding a pediatrician, it is important to do your own due diligence. When you obtain a list from the people you trust, check their names on the internet. There are a number of useful websites you can access. Leverage these resources when checking whether your potential candidate is board certified. Spend time finding out about their accreditations and the number of years they’ve spent in practice. It also helps to read patient reviews and any other relevant information about the pediatrician before making a firm decision.
Arrange a visit.
Once you trim down your list of potential candidates, arrange an appointment to meet each of them in person. This is to get a firsthand experience of their office culture, find out about what services they provide, and check if you feel at ease in discussing your concerns openly with them. If you don’t feel comfortable or have confidence in them, this might be a sign to move on with the next person on your list.
Arranging a visit even before you make a decision also helps you ascertain that the pediatrician has the ability to build a good rapport and make your child look forward to each of their visits.
First-Rate Pediatric Care in Spring and The Woodlands, TX
At Northwoods Pediatric Center, our board-certified pediatricians pride themselves on the compassionate and comprehensive care they provide the children in our community. We offer a range of high-quality services—such as well visits and immunizations—to help ensure your child’s overall health and development.
To find out more about our services or to schedule a consultation with one of our pediatricians, call us today at (281) 296-7770.
