Tips / Q&A

How Should I Search for a Pediatrician? What Questions Should I be Asking?
If you are soon to be a new parent, have recently moved to the area or are not entirely happy with your pediatrician, then you might want to keep these helpful suggestions in mind. One thing to remember is that only a visit with the doctor or nurse practitioner will truly reveal if they have the personality, philosophies, and qualifications you are seeking to provide the best health care for your child.

• Advice - Seek the advice of other parents or another physician (your obstetrician if you are pregnant) who shares your parenting and life philosophies.
• Connection - Call the office and speak with the Practice Manager to provide you with an overview of the office – if the office is too busy to speak with you over the phone, that may not be a good sign. It is important to answer the following question - "Does your child seem to connect/relate to the provider?" You will not be able to determine this until the child is brought in for a visit.
• Knowledge - Is the provider knowledgeable about the concerns you have regarding your child?
• Openness - Are they open to answer your questions? Do you share the same healthcare viewpoints?
• Helpfulness - Is the office staff helpful?
• Triage System – Is an on-call nurse available to answer your questions that may not require an appointment?
• Hours - Are there office hours on the weekends?
• Appointments - Can you readily get an appointment when needed?
• Relaying Information - Can the provider relay information to you and your child in a way that is easy to understand?
• Discipline of wrong doing –Have the physicians been disciplined by the State of Texas?
  

Considerations in Making the Right Choice:

• Professional Credentials – Our Doctors are board certified and have specialized in Pediatrics.
• Years Spent In Practice – Over 30 years collectively.
• Professional Affiliations – Our physicians have been selected as the head of the Pediatric Department in a leading hospital and have taught their techniques and skills to other physicians.
• Practice Arrangements and Locations – Our group practice acts as a team to care for your child, giving you the comfort in knowing that if your physician is unavailable, one of the pediatricians in our office will be there to assist you.
• Same Day Appointments – If your child is sick, seeing a doctor is necessary, and we will do what it takes to get you an appointment for that day.
• Hours – Our physicians are on call each evening, and also see sick children on Saturdays. We have a nurse (available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) to answer any of your questions. We hope our extensive offering of medical assistance brings you comfort in knowing that if your child is sick at 2 in the morning, we will be there to help in any way we can.
• Children of Their Own – All our providers have children of their own or would like to have children.
• Health Plans - We accept most Health Plans and Medicaid.
• Delivery – Our physicians have admitting privileges at theMedical Center of McKinney. If you're delivering at the Hospital, our physicians will see your baby within 24 hours or sooner if there are problems. If you are not delivering at this hospital, we will be in contact with the on-call pediatrician, and will see your baby for their two week check up or sooner if there are any questions or concerns.
• Pharmacy – H & S Pharmacy has subleased space in our suite to provide you with a convenient one stop service when filling prescriptions.
• Seeing Same Physician – If you would like to see the same physician each time you come, we will make every effort to accommodate you. We appreciate the bond that your child has developed with their physician. However, if the physician you selected is unavailable, it is our desire to provide your child with medical care as soon as possible. In order to do this, your child may need to see one of our other physicians or nurse practitioner if they have an opening.
• Changing Physicians In Your Office – It is the philosophy of our physicians to provide you with an experience that makes you comfortable. If after seeing one of our other physicians, you wish to change to another provider in our office, it is perfectly fine. For example, your child may reach the age where they prefer to have a female physician. All our physicians and Nurse Practitioners here at McKinney Pediatrics want the best for your child.
• Issues that are Important – Our staff is open to issues that are important to you and will be happy to discuss them along with helping you make the best medical decision for your child.