not happy with Daniel's doctor, sorry, this is long

I'll try to be succinct. My discomfort began when at 4 months, he suggested I start cereal with Daniel and try a taste of yogurt or ice cream. That didn't jibe with my knowledge of current recommendations and practice. He also didn't recognize Daniel's dermatitis as an infant as possibly due to allergens in my milk, and just recommended Cortaid, which I didn't use because it contains a steroid. If he had recommended dairy elimination early on, Daniel might not be allergic to milk today. Later, it became very obvious to me that this doctor doesn't understand food allergies, isn't current in his understanding of how to identify and how to treat them, and won't admit it. I had to kind of bully him for a referral to a specialist.

Yesterday was the last straw for me. DH took Daniel for the follow-up appointment after the ear-infection and classic allergic reaction to the Amoxicillin. I wasn't at the appointment, unfortunately. DH says the doc came in somewhat aggressive right off the bat because the allergist did stool samples recently (they came out negative). He seemed to imply that we had run to our allergist because we hadn't been happy with his plan for Daniel's digestive problems (the plan was to wait and see...). Actually, we had a regularly scheduled visit with the allergist, and he made an independent decision to order those tests without any pressure from us.

Worse: he declared that Daniel's severe hives while taking Amoxicillin must have been something else, it wasn't the penicillin. "We don't see penicillin allergies in kids this age." Guys, this was a textbook penicillin allergy reaction---textbook (see my post http://forums.parentingclub.com/index.php?showtopic=22821). I am angry now that I hung with this doctor as long as I have. At times I have appreciated him---he's great with kids, spends as much time as you want, other good things, but now I've lost faith in him. I'm going to proceed very carefully and find the right pediatrician before switching. I don't want to waste a switch to someone who ends up being not a good match. Any advice on finding a good pediatrician?

Yes, I have advice. First, where are you? I know that shouldn't make a difference but I am trying to formulate a good response.

Some of my advice is generic and some is going to be specific. Talk to nurses, other doctors and friends, do not make a rash decision. Then interview the doctor. But I have more advice. Tell me where you live approximately, any good med schools near by Many more questions.

AND... I don't want to put my problems over on you. But I am dealing with some similar concerns with my daughter and I am going to suggest that you have Daniel tested for celiac disease. Educate yourself first then discuss with the doctors. The best website I've seen on celiac disease is www.celiac.com and they have a forum. Basically, celiac disease shows up with gastric symptoms and dermititis AND then causes so many symptoms that false allergic reactions come thru. It is difficult to test a child under two for celiac but a preliminary diagnosis can be made with blood tests AND an informed doctor. (sorry I can't remember if Daniel is two yet )
Anyway, I have more pediatrician advice, tell me where you are!

You might be able to go to www.webmd.com and find a new pediatrician in your area.

I understand your frustration. My son went through a similar issue with our ped. His was bent femur bones and the Dr.'s treatment "wait and see".

I hope you find one soon.

I finally found a ped I loved when I found an AP group in my hometown and asked them for peds who didn't bash them for co-sleeping/extended nursing etc. Is there a LLL or AP mom/dad group in your hometown that you could go to for ideas?

If you like your allergist...can you ask them for a recommendation?

I'm in Ann Arbor, Michigan. University of Michigan Hospitals has some of the best specialists in the country. Our allergist is the head of the Pediatric Allergy department and we think he's wonderful. I just put a call in to see if he could recommend someone---at least he would be familiar with pediatricians who know a lot about food allergies. I've also received a lot of good reports for Liberty Pediatrics, that they have a holistic approach and even do housecalls... that is something to look into as well.

The good news is that Daniel's gaining weight well now (another pound in the last week and a half), and his poops are more solid and more frequent. His dermatitis cleared up as soon as I eliminated milk from my diet more than a year ago---he has beautiful clear skin these days, and with the amount of wheat he consumes the allergist thinks he'd have other symptoms if it were celiacs. On the other hand, I know some people with this disease, and they tell me not to rule it out, so I will pursue it further!

This post has been edited by DansMom on Jun 3 2005, 07:01 AM

Oooh that's a good suggestion Cary! I'm losing faith in my PED with Megan's reflux issues and alot like you Tracy mine things I'm batty for cutting out dairy to see if it helps Megan's reflux and rash issues. He said "it's not a horrible idea, I guess" or something to that effect. I can't remember his exact words but he basically let me know that wouldn't be HIS course of action. Although he is referring me to a nutritionist to help me form a better diet without dairy and so I can get soy out of my diet to see if it's also not agreeing with her.

I hope you find one you like. I really like Cary's suggestion and IF I can convince DH to change that's what I'll do. Our biggest (and stupidest) problem with not switching is he's a LONG time doctor of our family and it's purely an Italian thing. Doc is Italian, most of Dh's family has gone or goes to him and they truly respect him. He's NOT an old doc though, young (and good looking I might add, lol) and his wife BF all their children but he just isn't a big AP'er of sorts.

I think the primary consideration would be someone who isn't overly dogmatic. Someone who's open minded and willing to suspend judgment, and of course someone who REALLY, TRULY LISTENS. I like a dr who's secure and decisive, but willing to consider a problem from more than one angle. I used to have an ob that liked to offer me choices. He'd lay out the info- and then give me alternatives- he really made me feel like I had a hand on the steering wheel- and I really liked that. And then he moved.
Happy hunting Tracy. And congrats to Daniel on the wt gain and other improvements!

Sounds like you've gotten a lot of great advice, I think calling the allergist for a referral is a great place to start.

I know how hard it is to switch Peds... Ashley's Ped passed away a little over a year ago (she was young, it was a shock). We just loved her (the old Ped) and she was great with Ashley! We have switched to another Ped in the same office, but Ashley saw her for the first time at her 2nd year check up. Ashley hasn't been sick, so we haven't seen her since and probably won't until her 3rd year check up. I just feel like the ped doesn't know Ashley and we don't know her. I just don't feel as comfortable with her, but I hope that changes over time. Sorry didn't mean to ramble on.

I hope you find a Ped for Daniel that is a good fit and more open minded. From your posts, it really does sound like you are on the right track.. his skin is clear and he's gaining weight... that is AWESOME! Good for your for insisting on seeing a specialist! And, who cares if your Ped was upset that you had stool samples taken.. it seems to me that he should have Daniel's interest as his first priority, not his ego.

Good, I am glad his dermatitis cleared up, same thing with my daughter. I had her blood tested for the celiacs at 6 mos, but now they are saying that it was too early in her life and the test maybe a false negative. So they are going to test her again. We have a family history. I am glad it is in the back of your mind, It is a such an underdiagnosed disease.

Anyway, Cary's suggestion is very good. Also, checking with your allergist, who seems informed is a good idea too. Ask pointed questions if you can, like tell the allergist .... this is what I want, do you know of a ped who is like that? If your allergist has children ask him who takes care of his/her kids and why did they choose him? Also, ask the nurses or phlebotomists at the lab that draw Daniel's blood what they think. Where do they take their kids and why? Once you have a name or two, call and talk to the office manager's and ask them questions about the office, different docs, what you are needing, Would they want to accomodate and then ask them who sees their kids? (If the why they take their kid to a particular doctor is because of insurance, it may not mean much) It is always telling as to where doctors take their kids to be seen. I worked in a pediatrician's office for awhile in a town with 5 or six peds offices and almost all the young docs took their kids to our office (we had 6 peds), and asked for specific doctors. That always told me something!

OMG what an idiot docter!!! Don't see penicillian allergies in the age my butt I an allergic reaction to penicillian when I was that age!!! I hope you find a really good docter soon!! (((HUGS)))