Your children to lead healthy lives and be free from ailments such as these common acute respiratory infections in children. There are resident pediatric pulmonologists readily available at the hospital who are ready to help your children from respiratory diseases such as the common cold, sinusitis, ear infection, and extreme cases such as pneumonia.
While finding the perfect doctor might prove to be a challenging task, this extra effort will put you and your children at ease for at least you know how to reach out to your trusted doctor in case of emergencies. Children will also see and appreciate all the effort you put in taking care of them which is foundational when building trust with them.
Taking care of you and your children’s respiratory health is indeed important, especially in the time of COVID is known to have adverse effects on a person’s respiratory system. If you’re wondering how to determine the best pediatric pulmonologist for your child, then continue reading below:
What is a Pediatric Pulmonologist?
Pediatric Pulmonologists are medical doctors trained to diagnose, treat, and manage respiratory problems affecting children. They offer help to those who are newly born until they are 21 years old. They also offer advice to parents to adopt these habits to promote a healthy respiratory system.
Pediatric Pulmonologists undergo intense training before they can officially practice their profession. They go to medical school for four years and undergo at least three years of residency training in pediatric care. They also have to pass a medical board exam to acquire their license.
This is why you should only bring your children to qualified and trusted pediatric pulmonologists to get the best medical attention for your child who is dealing with respiratory problems.
Below are important factors to consider before choosing a doctor for your child.
How to find a good pediatric pulmonologist for your child
Parents like you want the best for their children especially when it comes to medical care and attention. Here are some tips you can follow so you can find and determine a good pediatric pulmonologist who will address your child’s respiratory problems.
1. Get referrals
Finding similarly concerned parents and adults who have met with pediatric pulmonologists in the past is a good start to get leads when finding a good pediatric pulmonologist for your child. Talk to friends or relatives so they can suggest where you can start looking.
In case your acquaintances are unaware of any available doctor in your area, consider joining social media groups such as Parenting Tips Philippines with 17,000 members who can answer your query and discuss other topics about child rearing.
Some topics commonly discussed in these kinds of groups include meal plans for your children as well as what to do in case of emergencies such as how to identify and prevent asthma attacks.
You can also go to a hospital’s list of resident doctors to see if there are pediatric pulmonologists.
Once you get a list of possible doctors, check for reviews online which you can also find on the hospital’s website.
2. Research your Pediatric Pulmonologist’s credentials
As discussed earlier, pediatric pulmonologists undergo intense training before they are allowed to begin practicing their profession.
Trust only doctors who are qualified and have years of experience when handling your child’s respiratory problems.
Once you find a doctor, research first about their credentials such as the number of years they are practicing, where they attended medical school, and what other specializations they possess so they diagnose your children accurately. You can easily inquire about the availability and credentials of their doctors thanks to this easy form that will let you set up an executive check-up with them.
3. Consider your doctor’s experience
While your pediatric pulmonologist may have stellar credentials, nothing beats a doctor with years of experience who has dealt with different kinds of patients who are afflicted with different kinds of respiratory problems.
Some respiratory ailments require an experienced doctor who can deal with serious diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis.
This is why it is a must that you have your child checkup with a pediatric pulmonologist at least annually so they can guide you on how to protect your family from tuberculosis and other serious ailments.
4. Consider the doctor’s gender
It is important for your child to open up and share about what they are feeling when they are at the doctor’s clinic. Children may not be as quick to open up depending on the gender of their doctor.
This study published on Harvard Health discusses the importance of considering the gender of a doctor, especially pediatricians who are dealing with children who may not be as confident and well-equipped to describe what they are feeling.
Ask your child’s preference before bringing them to the doctor’s office. Helping them prepare and reassuring them that it’s okay to talk about what they are feeling to their doctors will greatly help the doctor perform a successful diagnosis of your child’s respiratory health.
5. Research the hospital’s quality
To a certain extent, your doctor is just as good as the hospital where they are practicing. Your doctor may be great, but they might not have access to premier medical equipment that will help them perform their diagnosis and cure your children.
So when looking for a pediatric pulmonologist for your child, check for factors such as the availability of the equipment and the state of rooms and wards available that you can avail.
Consider also whether there are stringent protocols that the hospital follows for patients to help them avoid COVID-19. After all, your trip to an incompetent hospital might end up causing you to contract COVID and other diseases.
6. Evaluate the doctor’s communication style
You can tell that a doctor or a hospital takes your concern seriously when they ensure that you can contact them easily when a problem arises such as these easy-to-fill-out forms where you can set up an appointment immediately.
Evaluate also the way your doctor communicates their diagnosis with you and your child. A good doctor involves the child in their diagnosis so they directly give them advice on how to protect themselves and allow them to open up about other health concerns they are dealing with that they might not readily share with adults.
A doctor needs to have charisma so the patients would not be afraid to ask questions and discuss sensitive information with them that might be affecting their overall physical health.
7. Read patients’ review
The best and easiest way to check if your doctor meets your standards is to check for available reviews online.
Great doctors will have positive feedback from their patients and they will also explain why they think the doctor is doing a good job.
Meanwhile, even the lack of reviews is very telling about a doctor’s performance because none of their patients even made time to praise their experience with them.
As a parent, it’s also important that you express your reviews regarding your experience with a doctor to help other parents make smarter decisions, and also to help the hospital and the doctor on how they can improve their services.
Now that you are aware of the things you need to check and consider before choosing a pediatric pulmonologist, read below some respiratory ailments that help diagnose and administer treatment.
