Jaime Lewis (Host): In addition to love and safety, one of the greatest gifts you can give a child is the care of an excellent pediatrician. But where do you even start to look for one and when? Today, we're speaking with Dr. Jordan Coyner, a chief pediatric resident in the BayCare Pediatrics Residency Program in Tampa, Florida. She's going to share the basics of how to choose a pediatrician for your child and what to expect from that important relationship.

This is BayCare HealthChat. I'm Jamie Lewis. Hello, Dr. Coyner. Thanks for being on the podcast.

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Hi. Thanks so much for having me.

Host: I want to start by talking about an important decision for parents. We've all heard the term board-certified. Can you explain why that matters when choosing a pediatrician?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: So as a physician, you go through extensive training in medical school and residency, and afterwards, you become board-eligible. But it doesn't necessarily mean you're board-certified. That is a process that goes beyond state medical licensing until you take your board certification test. Board certification is really valuable to determine the expertise in that provider's field because they did take that extra test and that extra study time. And so, there's a great way to easily find out if your pediatrician is board certified. You can go on the American Board of Pediatrics Website. And one of the first things you'll see on the website is, is your pediatrician board certified? You can type their name and you can verify certification.

Host: That's great. Okay. Well, why is it important that a pediatrician values shared decision-making between parents and physician?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Yeah. This is one of my favorite topics. I think it's really important as a parent and a parent myself to feel heard and to feel valued. I always tell my families, "I will treat your child as if they were my own. I can give you my medical advice, my medical opinion, and hope that our relationship is one that you can trust me. But this is your child at the end of the day. This is your baby. They're the most important things to you as a parent. And there are many situations and many diagnoses that can allow for shared decision making.” So you wanna find someone who is open to open communication and good communication as well.

Host: How much should I expect a pediatrician to stay up to date on new guidelines and evidence-based medicine?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: I think this is really important for pediatricians because medicine is constantly evolving, constantly changing for the better, and that's what makes medicine so exciting for us as providers. There's more research, there's newer guidelines that are released. So, your pediatrician should stay up to date because that means they're doing what is the current and best standards and practice of care for your child.

Host: Well, and so as a parent, I'm looking around, I'm trying to find someone who jives with me and my family and obviously my child. How much does it matter whether a pediatrician works alone or as part of a group?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: That's a personal preference. If you find a pediatrician in a solo practice that you love, I think that's wonderful, but I do also think that there is value to finding a pediatrician in a group because if that provider at the solo practice is sick, who else will be there to see your child? If you go to a group site that has a bunch of physicians, you might be able to meet other different providers when they're sick and make sure that you get along with those as well. So, that's definitely personal preference, but there might be some value in finding a site that has multiple providers, just in case your one provider can't be there.

Host: Okay. Let's talk a little bit about finding care for a newborn. Should I expect my pediatrician to be affiliated with a particular hospital? And will that physician be the one to evaluate my baby after delivery at the hospital or after I'm discharged from the hospital?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: There are many private offices out in the community that don't necessarily have an affiliation with a hospital, and that's completely fine too. Here at BayCare, in our outpatient pediatric offices, we are affiliated with multiple BayCare hospitals, such as St. Joseph’s Women's Hospital in Tampa. As a provider, it's really nice because I have access to the same medical records to see everything that happened with the baby in the hospital. So, it's definitely a bonus, but not all providers are affiliated with a hospital.

Different providers do different things. There are some providers in the community that will see the baby within 24 hours, 36 hours of them being born, and others will work closely with the newborn hospitalists who will evaluate those babies, and then those pediatricians will see you the next day or the day after delivery at the office instead.

Host: How about behavioral health? Does it matter if my potential pediatrician includes behavioral health in their practice or refers out for all of it?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: I think it's really important for pediatricians to feel comfortable with handling the basics of some of the things that we're seeing nowadays. There really is this large mental health crisis, unfortunately, with youth and adolescents, likely related to social media and bullying. So, I think it's important to find a pediatrician who's comfortable with handling some things. We always do screenings in the office. We always talk about anxiety and depression so that it's not a hidden topic. We want our patients to feel comfortable speaking with us.

BayCare really prides itself on making strides towards this mental health movement that we're seeing, knowing signs and teaching and educating families. And I always encourage families to visit the BayCareKidsOnOurSleeves.org website because it gives a lot of information on education regarding anxiety and depression. So, there's many things that a pediatrician can handle in the office and we know when to refer to psychiatry or psychology. But I do think it's important to make sure that they are making mental health a priority in their office.

Host: What should I find out about a doctor's well waiting areas and sick waiting areas in their office?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: I think this is a great time to make a visit at a pediatrician office so you can see how the setup is, you can meet the provider. You want to make sure that there are separate well areas and sick waiting areas. Because if you're bringing your newborn in for their first appointment, you don't want them sitting in a waiting room with multiple sick kids. So, it's important that the setup of the office really is conducive to a healthy environment for all the kids that are there.

Host: What kinds of questions should I ask about a potential pediatrician's policies?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Offices will have vaccination policies. And so, we are seeing an uptick in families not wanting to vaccinate their children, but some offices will require that those children be vaccinated to attend their practice. So, that's an important question I would ask when deciding who your pediatrician will be.

Host: What are some logistical factors I should consider when I'm thinking about choosing a pediatrician?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Something that's really important is the proximity of location from your home. You don't want to have to drive an hour to see a pediatrician when your kid is sick and screaming in the back of the car because that inevitably can happen. It's important to ask about evening and weekend hours. Kids get sick late in the day or overnight, on weekends. It's never a convenient time when we get sick. So, does that office offer evening or weekend hours, or do I have to go to an urgent care with my child?

So, it's really important to find out what the availability is for that office. Also, that kind of goes with after-hours and on-call. Kids get sick in the middle of the night at 9:00, 10:00, 2:00 in the morning. Is my provider and my pediatrician available to help me at nighttime? Is there a physician available on the phone 24/7?

Host: Right. It actually sometimes seems like that's the only time they get sick, right, is when you need those extended hours.

Dr. Jordan Coyner: When the office is closed is when they get sick, but there should always be someone available for you so you never feel alone as a parent. And then, same-day appointments, that's important, too. Like we said, kids get sick at different times of the day. If you pick them up from school at three o'clock and they need to be seen, is your office available to squeeze you in for those sick visits? So, that's something that's important as well.

Host: Yeah. That is important. Well, as a parent, what should I look for in terms of a personal connection with a pediatrician?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: I think like a lot of things in life you have to be able to click with your pediatrician. You want to make sure that you are listened to, valued, that you're not being rushed. You want to know that connection with your pediatrician. Do they interact well with your child? You want to feel that comfortable mutual trust and respect. And more importantly, as our kids get older, we want to make sure that they feel comfortable speaking to somebody. There's a lot of topics that kids don't want to talk to their parents about. But at least if they can have someone that they've seen, a pediatrician that they feel that they can trust to speak with, I think that's pretty valuable.

Host: Well, is it possible to schedule a prenatal introductory appointment to get some of these questions out of the way ahead of time to meet a potential pediatrician and see if we click?

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Absolutely. I think that's one of the best things that you can do. A lot of offices allow virtual visits, telehealth, because everyone has such busy schedules. Parents are running around with other children, so absolutely, we can do virtual visits. It's important to meet, build that rapport, see if you have a good relationship. Prepare for your baby. You can ask questions at that time. Does that office offer breastfeeding support? Those are different topics that are good to speak with your pediatrician about at a time when deciding who you want to see.

Host: That makes sense. Well, thank you, Dr. Coyner, for this great discussion.

Dr. Jordan Coyner: Absolutely. And I'd like to say as a parent, I know how important our kids are to us. They are our world and I really encourage everyone to find a pediatrician that you can build a wonderful, trustworthy rapport and relationship with. There's no greater gift or honor to watch your child grow as a pediatrician and to take care of them and to be trusted to do so here in the Tampa community. So, thank you so much.

Host: Absolutely. That wraps up this episode of BayCare HealthChat. Head over to our website at BayCare.org for more information and to get connected with one of our providers. Please remember to subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and all the other BayCare podcasts. For more health tips and updates, follow us on your social channels. And if you found this podcast informative, please share on your social media and be sure to check out all the other interesting podcasts in our library. Thank you for listening.