Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Nothing is good enough for me

I am seriously considering switching pediatricians AGAIN. I guess I have pretty high standards, because these doctors are really pissing me off. Well, it is not just the doctors - it is also the nurses and front desk people. They all piss me off.

To showcase their incompetence, I am going to list several of the incidents where they pissed me off. Here we go...

1. When Izzy was a week old, we took him in for his 1st check-up. He was still a little yellow, so the doctor asked me to bring him back in a week. I explained that Porgie had her 18 month appointment the following week and asked if I could just bring him to her appointment. The doctor said yes. So the following week, I took both kids to the appointment. But the stupid doctor (a different doctor from the first visit), refused to look at Izzy's jaundice because he didn't have an appointment. Isn't that shitty? I was sooooo pissed.

2. Around Christmas time, Porgie was very sick. After being extremely ill for about a week, she suddenly broke out in a rash. I was worried about her, so I called to talk to a nurse at the pediatrician's office. No one answered, so I left a message explaining Porgie's condition. TWO hours later, no one had called me back. I called again and got the answering machine again. I called back and spoke to a receptionist. I explained the situation, and she proceeded to tell me that they were too busy to respond to my call. I told her that since I couldn't talk to a nurse, I wanted to make an appointment to see a doctor. She cut me off mid-sentence and told me they were all booked up. I was livid.

3. When I took Izzy to see the doctor about his poop problems, I also talked to her about his horrible sleeping habits. I was wondering if maybe they were related to one another. She told me THREE times in the course of our conversation that Izzy was born a great sleeper and that his horrible sleeping habits are learned behavior. Apparently, I taught Izzy to wake up every two hours to nurse. Because obviously I LOVE getting up all freaking night long. So, any moms with kids who don' sleep - IT IS ALL YOUR FAULT.

4. At Izzy's four month appointment, the doctor told me to let him cry-it-out at night. But he didn't just suggest it - he said it in a way that implied that I HAD to let him cry at night. I really don't like when doctor's try to tell you how to parent your children. They can give suggestions or offer advice, but they should not act like they call the shots. And he told me that co-sleeping with your baby will result in suffocation. What a narrow-minded prick.

Am I being too sensitive or do you think these people are jerks?

21 comments:

Chastity said...

You are not being too sensitive. All of these examples show that you need a new doctor...not just a new doctor...a new office altogether. My daughter's peds office is wonderful! Of course, we've had some small issues, but there has been nothing I'd ever think of leaving over. Everyone is always falling all over themselves to help and be sweet. When you do leave, you need to let them know EXACTLY why so they can hopefully fix some of the problems.

Dooneybug said...

Trust me....it is NOT you. There are so many incompetent doctors/nurses/receptionists out there that it's pretty scary. I'm not saying everyone's like that, but I've met my fair share too. I think you totally need to keep looking. We love our pediatrician and her nurse is awesome so those kind of people DO exist and you deserve to get the best care - both medical and customer service wise!

TEACHBROECK said...

you are right it is not just the dr...it is the whole atmosphere of the clinic...my nurse made a huge mistake on Friday (putting the heart monitorupsidedown on my belly...after 2 miscarriages it was NOT fun) but i love her and my Dr. and the whole staff so much it was all okay! GOOD LUCK!

Amber said...

Wow that sounds pretty crappy! I don't think you're being overly sensitive at all. I would definantly look into a different peditrician.

Antropóloga said...

That stuff all sucks. You should write them a letter with this info. If you switch offices, I don't blame you.

Jen said...

OMG they are TOTAL ASSHOLES. You definitely need to change doctors. Cole's doctor's office is totally accomodating to me and they never make me feel crazy for bringing him in for little things and they ALWAYS get me in same-day. They never TELL me how to parent or that I am doing anything the WRONG WAY. Get a NEW DOCTOR!!

Anonymous said...

Totally unacceptable!!! Switch!!!

Marni's Organized Mess said...

Finding a pediatrician is really hard. Hang in there! In the meantime.... maybe some voodoo dolls might help? :)

Carrie said...

I know I would be looking for a new office...

Rachel said...

No seriously they are Jerks. A lot of doctors give their own opinion and they have no right. They should stick to what they know-medical stuff and I am not sure most of them are even good at that. It must be hard.

I think Izzy def has a bad tummy and I am not doctor but I am a mom. Seriously, try him on a probiotic. It helped Max so much. I wish I would have done it earlier.

A Mom Two Boys said...

I LOVED my pediatrician (and not because he was HOTT) but hated his office, so I switched. It was great. Best thing I ever did. You don't need the headache and if you're unhappy, you're unhappy, so switch!

misguidedmommy said...

your just going to kill me when i reply
1. my doctor would have gladdly seen codi at brandons apt

2. my doctors office has a policy, they call back with in 30 minutes ALWAYS. they have never failed, and have never treated me like an idiot when i call with idiot questions

3 & 4: brandon has always sucked at sleeping, my doctor has always made suggestions but has always said, ultimatly it was up to me what to do. with both kids i have co slept. my doctor has nicely told me the statistics, and then said, it is up to me, they are my kids and the most important thing is that i have piece of mind, and if co sleeping makes me calm and stressed me out less then i should do it.

so. in summation (is that a word, am i using it right) you are not over reacting. i left brandons first doctor after one visit. ONE VISIT! I found my current doctor because he was the pediatric urgent care dr on call. i spent about 20 minutes with him and I JUST KNEW. it was as though i had met my medical soul mate (i feel same about my obgyn). things i love about him. when my kids cry, if i dont pick them up fast enough, he picks them up and cuddles them until i'm done doing what i'm doing. he talks to them and pays attention to them. he listens to all of my questions and answers me in ways i can understand, with facts and then tells me to make my own decision based on how i felt about his info. he has never scolded me for letting brandon eat a tub of butter, or letting him co sleep until he was 22ish months. hes never yelled at me for anything and i feel comfortable telling him ANYTHING.

my advice, find a new doctor! i love mine so much i wanted him to marry my aunt, then i realized he was married. the cool thing about him also, is he has kids the same age as my kid, so he actually is a parent in our day in age in this society, he isn't some old fart who forgot what it was like parenting, and he isn't some young thing whose never had kids

wow can this comment be any longer

Anth said...

Re 3 - total bullcrap. Some babies are born wanting 16 hours of sleep per day, some are born wanting 9 hours of sleep per day. Some babies will not sleep well. Some babies have colic and scream for hours. But of course you know all this.

Re 4 - Puh-lease. Every time I co-slept with Miss E, I slept so lightly I was aware of her every movement. There is no way I could have suffocated her. I have a feeling a lot of co-sleeping moms are the same way. In almost every instance of suffocation, you will find the parent was drunk or high. But I think you already know that too. :)

Sounds like your pediatrician's office blows.

Kris said...

Wow.. That is horrible. I don't blame you for being upset! Or for looking for another dr - I would too!

Thankfully we love our pedi - as does my daughter. Unfortunately the nurses there are awful. Well, one in particular. We like (well I do) to nurse her while she's getting her shots - helps calm her down some lol. But this last lady yelled at us about how it was not allowed (after having done it there before mind you) and unsafe to both me & my baby, was glaring at us & then held her down roughly (4mo's old too) & shoved in the shots. Jas & I were both pissed. If I see her agian I'm asking for a diff nurse lol.. if they don't like it too bad!

Greg said...

I would totally switch to!! The only thing I would switch is E's doctor. It is a guy, and she freaks out everytime she sees him. She responds much better to the lady doctor that we see sometimes.

I hope you find a better doctor and office soon :)

Melain said...

NO, you should LOVE your pediatrician. If just ONE of those things had happened, I'd say you need to chill out. But that's consistently bad service. Start shopping.

Anonymous said...

I have switched offices twice now and I am starting to think about a third time. However, my choices are limited. I could have written this post myself.

kristi said...

No you are not overreacting!

Yep and if the dr.'s are semi good, the receptionists suck.

Awake said...

Sorry I've been absent (Google Reader wasn't catching you).

But I'll ditto what everyone else has said. That place SUCKS.

Awake said...

Sorry I've been absent (Google Reader wasn't catching you).

But I'll ditto what everyone else has said. That place SUCKS.

Blazing Goddess said...

Find a new one. My kids are autistic and borderline autistic, and my doctor just wouldn't hear it. So finally I just told him, "This is what will happen. I will find the necessary help, and you WILL GIVE ME MY REFERRAL. Clear?" It was and he did. I think Dr.'s are trained to disregard mother's concerns, or at least downgrade them by, like, 60%. Bottom line, this is your kid and you're in charge. He might have medical know how, but you know your kids and your dr. should repsect that. It's SUPPOSED to be a partnership. Find a partner.