Dr Family Practice or a Traditional Pediatrician - Which is Right For Your Child?

What are the pros of seeing Dr Family Practice or taking the kids to a pediatrician? Moms and dads are often more willing to make sacrifices for their little bundles of joy than for themselves. It is hard wired into most parental brains to obtain the highest quality of care for our offspring. Many parents feel that taking junior to the family doc is the number one choice while others feel that a pediatrician is a must-have. What are the best things about these two types of health care providers? Here are some things to think about:

Dr Family Practice

Knows the whole family

If a newborn baby starts to see the physician who has been treating the whole gang before his of her birth, the infant will have a practitioner who already knows about the medical history or mom, dad and siblings. This general practitioner may have even delivered the newborn. There’s a warm and connected feeling when the whole group sees the same professional and that means a lot.

Has seen it all

This pro has a broad knowledge of infancy to geriatrics. He or she knows about birth, chicken pox and Alzheimer’s. He or she has probably see siblings and even cousins go through allergies and acne which allows this doctor to be well acquainted with the patterns of this family’s gene pool.

Continuity

A child can still continue to see the same physician as he or she enters adulthood. There’s a sense of comfort associated with familiarity and continuity.

Convenience

If several family members have come down with the flu, they can all be seen by the same doctor, saving time, energy and adding convenience to a family’s schedule.

Pediatrician

Specialist

A pediatrician has taken additional training beyond Dr Family Practice to obtain a depth of knowledge on this stage of human development. He or she knows all about illness and health conditions of ages birth through the teen years.

Fun waiting room

Pediatricians often gear their waiting rooms for their clientele. This means that there will likely be toys, games, Dr. Seuss books and the Disney channel available to entertain everyone in the waiting room.

Vast store of knowledge

While Dr Family Practice has to know most things about every age, a pediatric specialist is able to focus on one age group. This allows him or her to have a vast store of knowledge in order to help keep kids healthy.

Kept current on childhood issues

Immunizations, maladies and treatments change all the time. A pediatrician will keep abreast of all the current developments of those in childhood and adolescence.

Meet other parents

If a new or seasoned parent is looking for a supportive network of others in the same stage of life, a pediatric waiting room is one more place for friendships to blossom. Since everyone’s waiting to see the doc, why not strike up a conversation and make a new friend?