Parents should zero on the paediatrician roughly during the second trimester of pregnancy, that is about three to five months before the baby’s arrival. This will give the parents a lot of time to assess the paediatrician and opt for the best. If possible meet them personally before finalising and most important your comfort level and a good connect from the time you zero in. Thus a paediatrician will be the one who will take care and manage the health, well-being, and development of the newborn till the baby is a young adult.
The checklist
Which institute the paediatrician has passed out from; his way of managing the baby illness; how he manages complex illness which may require coordination with other specialists; most important his schedules for check-ups and immunisations. Parents always want the best healthcare for their babies and the chosen paediatrician should provide the best care for the little one.
Consider the following points for deciding a good and sensible paediatrician for your bundle of joy.
– Take help from your gynaecologist; they can be the best help in choosing the paediatrician, as you have been in consultation with them. They would have been familiar with the paediatrician on their reputation and prominence in the respective field of child care. This way the gynaecologist will put in a word about the parents which will be an advantage.
– Relatives, acquaintances and friends; get in touch with those who had the bundle of joy recently – they will be having quite a quantum of data, which will help in exploring the possibility of zeroing down on the paediatrician. Take recommendations, don’t finalise, keep your options open.
– Pay a visit to the paediatrician; the first visit will give the correct vibes, the small talk will help to gauge the comfort level and the competence of the doctor. If the paediatrician is zeroed in to pay a visit during the pregnancy and shares one’s thoughts this will help to build a rapport with the doctor. These visits will help in knowing the support staff of the paediatrician clinic. Especially the time given for listening to the child’s health challenges; do they maintain the bare minimum hygienic condition; do they respect your opinion and observation or is it one-sided. Check on feedback which will help on other entities – appointments and waiting time.
– Have a choice of gender; it is advisable that you do have the choice of the paediatrician in terms of gender. Normally we have the consultation from the same doctor from birth to teenage years, thus having the same gender Paediatrician helps the growing child more comfortably and they can share and communicate their problems and health challenges.
– Paediatrician accessibility: the clinic should be reachable and accessible possibly which should be nearby to the residence of your stay. The first few months are crucial as there will be frequent visits to the doctor – paediatrician. This will help in reaching the clinic during emergencies. If you are planning for a daycare centre then it should be nearby where you can reach in times of emergency. Check whether the paediatrician is available on phone and video calls as this will help in case you cannot pay a visit personally with the child.
– First visit and thereafter; the paediatrician should be present during the delivery and should do the regular checkup during the first forty-eight hours. Explore the possibility of having the baby in a multi-speciality hospital if the chosen paediatrician is not available thus any complicated deliveries may be taken care of.
– Finally; find out if the paediatrician is offering any additional services in the clinic – laboratory tests, mental and behavioural consulting along with other specialists who are available on call.
