I am contemplating switching pediatricians for my daughter (4) and upcoming baby (due November). I will start off by saying that I love our current pediatrician, however, a year ago the peds practice opened up a second location that is 30 minutes away from our house. I specifically choose this practice because it was so close to our home, only five minutes. Our doctor does have office hours at the location close to us, but only two out of three days, the rest of the week she is at the other location. I have not had a problem scheduling well visits at the location that is close by, but we have had to make the 30 minute trek for a couple of sick visits for my daughter over the course of the year. While it hasn't been a huge problem, it has been inconvenient. Given all the visits that newborns require, as well as, unanticipated sick visits, I'm afraid the 30 minute drive will become nuisance if they fall on days when our doctor as it the other location.
I am not very familiar with the other doctors in the practice, as we've had the same doctor since my daughter was born. I also don't know how to approach our doctor about this. Like I said, we love having her as a doctor, and I certainly don't want to burn any bridges, nor make my daughter uncomfortable meeting a new doctor. I'm just not sure what to do, but would like to figure this out before our new baby is born and before my daughter's five year wellness visit, which will also be in November.
You don't really have to explain anything to the doc, if you're not comfortable doing so. Just call the office , ask for the file to be transferred. If you feel the need to tell the doc b/c of the good care you've received, just thank them & be honest about the 30 minute commute . They will understand. Patients come & go all the time, for multiple reasons. Honestly, the doc probably wouldn't even notice.
This really isn't a big deal... your pediatrician is surely used to people switching. In fact, she probably wouldn't even expect you to notify her, just her staff. I would suggest calling the office to see if other pediatricians in the practice are accepting new patients at the location close to you (or could you just see them for urgent care issues when your current lady is across town?). And if that's not an option, look at other pedi places nearby. They'll have a form for you to fill out requesting your daughter's medical records. Last but not least... is your daughter uncomfortable meeting new people? My girls are four too, and I don't think changing pediatricians would bother them.
Dr's are used to having patients leave. Just tell them you had to find a closer place and request your child's records to either be sent there, or they can prepare them and give them to you. That won't burn any bridges. You had ot get to know this Dr at one point, so it will be okay to get to know another.
When we switched I just told the secretary we were moving (we weren't, but I didn't want to get into why we wanted to switch) and to give me our records. She didn't question it. I will say this, finding a pediatrician that you love is very hard. When my kids are sick, we rarely see our pediatrician. They always seem to get sick on the one day she isn't there or is booked solid. It is a large practice so we see someone different and sometimes unfamiliar when they are sick. Sometimes it is frustrating, sometimes it can be good to get another opinion. We make sure to schedule the well visits and the advanced visits that aren't urgent with the one that we love.
There is no need to worry about "burning bridges". Doctors get used to having patients switch out of their care. And beyond that, doctors take an oath to help a patient no matter what, period. If the new location is where you want to go then go there. If you feel uncomfortable seeing a doctor you have never met, go meet them. Ask the doctor you do see now who she thinks will be a good fit for your kids if she isn't available. And if going through the work of deciding on a new doctor and you still have not found one you like, look some other ones up. There is no shame in making a decision that benefits your family, that's your job.
If you find another great practice then just switch. No explanations. If you really like this doctor, talk to her during your next visit. Explain exactly the way you wrote it here. Fears like yours are normal. Our pediatrician's office has two locations. One 5 min from my house and another over 30 min. i never go to that far one. Also, I only like one pediatrician from all the staff. We started seeing this one pediatrician when we loved to long island. We got to be seen by other pediatricians from the same office and did not like any of them. I explained to our pediatrician that I only trust him. Two years later it seems he only works out of our office.
during the times my kids were seen by others and i didn't trust them completely, i have had one of the front staff call our regular pediatrician for a follow-up who would then call us at home and discuss the current issue. Our staff has also added an email service for questions so that helps too. Just discuss it with your pediatrician. See what she says. See if she has any plans on adding days to your office.
A 30 minute drive is worth it to me for a great pediatrician. When our family moved we found a hard time finding a new pediatrician and I would often drive 2 hours to see our old one. That's a 4 hour round trip, but I felt like I had to. That Dr has since retired and our new one is 30 minutes away.
I do understand. Will you only look at Dr.'s that are within 5 minutes of your house? Also consider a GP if you can't find a Pediatrian that close. As a mother of all girls, we had to switch Dr. when my oldest got uncomfortable with seeing a male Dr. It was very hard to find a female Pediatrian in our area. So keep that in mind while you are looking for a new Dr.
