Doctor Shopping

I can't find another title that will best suit the point of this entry. But read on to find out why...

My daughter is 1 year and 8 months old. She's had 3 pediatricians already and we went to see her 4th last Monday.




Her first pediatrician, i really liked a lot. Unfortunately, we had to move from the Laguna to Quezon City due to work and the business. She was really good, had more patience in dealing with both the kids and their parents. She took time to explain things without going through any heavy medical terms. She was also an allergologist which came in handy because I'm quite prone to allergies and so is my daughter.

Yan-yan's 2nd pedia was from St. Luke's. Unfortunately, she was going on maternity leave the following month so she adviced us to approach her recommendations. We didn't get to know her that much.

The third doctor we had was from Medical City. Her clinic was really very nice. Very modern and kid friendly. She was very accommodating as well. Unfortunately, it was quite hard to travel from Q.C. to Medical city. It was traffic most of the time and it was hard to get out of the area if we had to take a cab on certain visits.

My husband and I couldn't afford to ask for referrals anymore last Monday as my little one had really high fever and we were already rushing to get a consult. We scanned St. Luke's directory again. Looking for pediatricians who had a good schedule and whose names might sound familiar (I actually didn't recall any as I'm not well connected in that industry).

We went to a room on the 4th floor only to find out that the doctor wasn't there anymore. On our way to the elevator to go down, we saw a queue of people by the waiting area near a doctor's office that said PEDIATRICIAN. The people who were in line looked like busy moms and dads, new parents, seasoned professionals and the like with their kids in tow. Based on the profiles of the patients, my husband and I decided to try it out.

As I approached the secretary, I saw that the doctor's schedule was quite nice. She had a 10am to 5pm schedule from Monday to Friday and a 10am to 3pm schedule every Saturday. It was a regular consult. She breezed through the previous baby books we've had. She smiled. Checked on my baby as the little one threw a fit when the doctor checked on her nose and ears. She told us that we had to update her vaccinations and scheduled a follow up check-up for next week. She wrote down a prescription and a few pointers on how to monitor my child's health for the next few days. If the fever hasn't gone down in 2-3 days, I need to bring her back prior to the proposed schedule of our next visit. Soon after, she told us everything was ok which was our queue to go out.

When I got to the secretary, she asked me for the fee of 500 and told me that the vaccine was going to cost somewhere over 1500 and that was it.

I was actually not so used to being dealt that way. I was hoping to get further information on my child's condition. I did try to ask why she would be feeling that way and all the other questions as to what I needed to check, etc. etc. She plainly answered me with basic answers like it's normal, it's the flu season, she has allergies.

I wasn't really used to this as my other pediatricians were actually very enthusiastic in explaining to me how a certain condition or sickness occurs, what I need to do, how to do it, other precautionary measures and all the other facts that would make you feel calm and ensure that your baby is going to be ok. I actually had to text my very first pedia for Yan-yan and ask her all the facts and she was very helpful despite the fact that I was not longer visiting her regularly.

I'm not quite an experienced mom. My mom was actually so used to going to our neighborhood family doctor (who was actually quite good and was a great family friend) when we were in Laguna plus the rest of the doctors in the area were well known and we could easily get referrals.

Coming to Manila again, with all the doctors around, was a difficult task for me. Most of my friends had their pedias in locations farther than my area so getting referrals were quite hard for me than normal.

I'm not quite sure if it's just me or is it bad to change to another doctor when you feel you're not that comfortable or at ease with the current one you have?

I mean, I have these fears that If I change to another doctor again, that my child's condition might not be monitored properly and of course that thing of not showing up later on as well given that we're already in their client roster.

I think I need to research further on this matter and get opinions from friends and other interest parties online or those who already have experience on the matter. I might actually get good referrals if anyone suggests a pedia that they already trust and know.