Re: Fwd: Know What: Referrals to a Specialist / STACY

[Guest guest]

Thanks Deb!!

> > Just got this email- thought it might be helpful to some of you

> starting out!

> >

> > ' Mom

> >

> > rella1234@a... ()

> > From: knowwhat@k...

> > Subject: Know What: Referrals to a Specialist

> > Date: Thursday, March 21, 2002

> >

> >

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>

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> >

> > Here is today's Know What topic:

> >

> > =========================

> > Referrals to a Specialist

> > =========================

> >

> > When should your child see a specialist? Unfortunately, for some

> children, it is only when your doctor or insurance company says

that

> you can.

> >

> > Personally, I think that there are two main reasons for a child

to

> get a referral to a specialist. The first reason is because I, as

> their Pediatrician, think they should. It may be that I don't know

> what is wrong with the child, or I know what is wrong and he just

> needs a specialist's care for further management.

> >

> > The second reason is because a parent thinks that their child

> should see a specialist. It may be that you are uncomfortable with

> what your Pediatrician has said or you may just want a second

> opinion.

> >

> > For example, you may have a child that has had a lot of ear

> infections, say 6 or 9 in the past year, but you have a doctor

> that 'doesn't believe in tubes' and won't send you to a specialist.

> In this case, since many other doctors would think that ear tubes

> were indicated, a second opinion or referral to a specialist would

be

> a good idea. In contrast, I recently saw a patient who has had a

lot

> of ear infections in the past month. Since spring was coming and he

> was getting older and would be less likely to get more infections,

I

> didn't recommend that he get tubes. The mother thought he might

need

> them though, so I referred him to an ENT specialist for a second

> opinion.

> >

> > So what should you do if your Pediatrician doesn't offer to send

> you to a specialist? The first thing is to simply ask if you can

get

> a referral. If you explain that you would be more comfortable

getting

> a second opinion, I think that most Pediatricians will give you the

> referral. At the very least, you could ask your Pediatrician to

call

> a specialist on the phone and discuss the case further with them.

> >

> > What if your Pediatrician refuses? Depending on your insurance,

you

> may just be able to get an appointment yourself. Your other options

> are changing Pediatricians, or appealing to your insurance company.

> >

> > Even if you don't need a referral, it is usually a good idea to

ask

> your Pediatrician for one anyway. That way you can be sure to see

> someone that your Pediatrician knows and trusts.

> >

> > What type of specialist should you see? In most cases, you should

> try to see a Pediatric specialist, for example a Pediatric

> Neurologist if you toddler has seizures instead of a general

> Neurologist. Pediatric specialists have special training in taking

> care of the problems of children and many, except for surgical

> specialists, are also Pediatricians.

> >

> >

> >

> > For more information:

> > <a href= " http://newsletters.keepkidshealthy.com/cgi-

> bin/knowwhat.cgi?

> l=inside_pediatrics/referrals_specialist.html " >Referrals to a

> Specialist</a>

> >

> >

> > <a href= " http://newsletters.keepkidshealthy.com/cgi-

> bin/knowwhat.cgi " >more Know What topics</a>

> >

> >

> > <a href= " http://www.keepkidshealthy.com " >Visit

> keepkidshealthy.com</a>

> >

> >

>

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