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Tips On Choosing The Best Pediatrician For Your Special Needs Child

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Whether you're moving to a new town or you recently gave birth, you'll need to find a pediatrician. Since a pediatrician is responsible for recommending and coordinating specialists for their tiny patients, it is important that parents of special needs children work with a pediatrician they trust. There are a few tips you can utilize to make sure you partner with the pediatrician who has your child's best interests at heart. 

Select a Pediatrician Who Is Familiar With Your Child's Diagnosis

Should your little one have a diagnosis of a rare disease or syndrome, you'll want to first make sure that any pediatrician you are considering is familiar with it. For example, if your son or daughter has Angelman Syndrome and the doctor was unfamiliar with it, he or she wouldn't know to refer you to a neurologist for EEG monitoring, as most children with Angelman Syndrome suffer seizures by the age of three. 

Choose a Pediatrician Who Makes the Time to Be Available

Chances are your child with special needs is going to have medical issues both inside and outside of office hours. Talk with the office staff before deciding on which doctor to go with. You want to find out how quickly you can get an appointment when you need one, and what the procedure is if the child is ill or injured and the office has closed for the day. If the practice has on-call doctors to handle concerns outside of office hours, then you'll also want to ask what the typical response time is. You don't want a return call four hours later.

Find Out If the Pediatrician Takes Your Insurance

Because special needs children have more health issues than most, you'll need to call and confirm that the doctor you prefer actually takes your insurance. It is easy to suffer financial losses when your child is sick frequently, so you'll need to work with in-house doctors. Even if you opt to pay for the visits to the pediatrician because you really like him or her, you need to keep in mind that doctor will not be familiar with the specialists that take your insurance. He or she would not know who to recommend or whether or not a visit to that doctor would require a referral. 

Look for a Pediatrician That Is Compassionate and Patient

Sometimes diagnosing a special needs child's illness is like figuring out a jigsaw puzzle, especially if that child is non-verbal. It is important to have a pediatrician that is compassionate and understanding. He'll also need to have the patience to examine the child from head to toe, caring more about the child's wellness than rushing through the appointment. 

For more information, contact local professionals like Better Family Care.


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