How long are your doctor visits?

[kimkim]

Maybe I got spoiled with my hour long MW appts throughout my pregancy but it seems like my ped appts are SO short.  The assistant weighs her, measures her then the Dr. comes in and chats for 5 minutes or so and if I don't have any q's that's that.

She's highly recommended by a lot of people and I just don't know if this is the norm or if I am being brushed aside or what.

I'm thinking of taking her to someone else but I really don't have the energy to shop around for a new pediatrician.

[PatioGardener]

I would say visits to the family doc (for my DS) are 5-7 min long - not including the wait in the room before hand (which I take advantage of to weigh him.)

[P.J.]

Our doc does it all herself- no assistants- and I would say altogether it takes maybe 7-10 minutes...unless I had more questions then we would talk longer. You say your ped asks if you have any questions; have you ever asked any? If so does she answer them fully and give you the answers you need, or do you feel brushed off then? As long as I felt my questions were being addressed fully, I wouldn't worry, as 5 mins for a normal checkup seems about right.

[MacKinnon]

We see a family doctor and his wife, who is a nurse practioner. They take about 15 minutes I would say? My last appointment we were trying to come to some answers on DD's reflux issues, and her weight gain, etc. she took about 35 minutes with us. I think that's not typical though. And the trade off is that they book for every 15 minutes but often take longer, so we wait a lot there. I'm willing to wait for my turn though, because I know we'll get that kind of attention. I think 5 to 10 mins for a regular check up is pretty normal.

[BetsyS]

Forever!!  I feel like I have to pack a snack and an activity and on and on.  LOL.  They last about 30-45 minutes, all included.  I leave there exhausted, but I can't seem to make her hurry, and I like her otherwise, so it's all good. 

Contrast that with my MW/OB appts (I've had both), and they were always like 5 minutes.  Much more my style. 

[KempsMama]

Ours are around the 5 minutes mark with the actual Dr, unless I have some questions or we discuss the weather, lol. 

[poorlittlefish]

Hmm, we spend about 5 mins with the nurse and then 15 with our ped.  I love love love her.  She isn't as BFing supportive as I would like but she is so warm and caring and makes my girls feel really comfortable.

[treekidsandadog]

Our family Dr. ROCKS!!  My kids love him and he's super nice.  He comes from a large family (over 30 neices and nephews and he only has three siblings) and has five children himself so he has a lot of patience.  We're from a small area so everyone knows everyone.  My grandparents go to the same practice, different docs, but he has seen them before when covering and he remembers all about our family history which is nice.  I'd say we prob spend 10-15 mins with him unless we have questions.  He's really good about answering any questions. 

On the flip side I used to take my DD to a pediatrician whos appointments took over an hour, but she spent most of that time lecturing me b/c I was a young mom which apparently made me too stupid to make positive decisions for my child. 

I'd say if you feel comfortable with your doc and your questions are answered fully then don't sweat the short time period.  For regular well child checks they are just going over a check list of different milestones and weigths/measurements which can all be done rather quickly.  If your not comfortable though do find someone your comfortable with b/c it's important to like your doc.  You are trusting this person with your health and if you don't feel good about the relationship then it won't work.  I trust my doc fully b/c he's the only one who found my golf ball sized tumor when 4-5 other docs just told me I was tired and run down...

In the end you need to do what's right for your family and I'm sure you will.

[Knitting Mama]

I would say 30 minutes total, give or take a few. The nurse weighs and measures my baby (and gives any vaccinations if we're getting any that day), and then the doctor comes in and we talk for a good 15-20 minutes. I love my pediatrician, though, and love asking lots of questions of her.

[NicolleLynne]

About 45 minutes to an hour here. We come in, the assistant takes measurements and then the doctor comes in to examine DD and answer any specific health related questions. Afterward the assistant comes back for vaccinations if we're doing any (we do selective and delayed vax) and then we meet the doctor in his office to chat about whatever is on our minds (baby proofing, dietary questions, co-sleeping, etc.)

[tinynyota]

I'm also in PDX and I love our ped. She spends at least an hour with us at each well visit (we're new at this, so I appreciate the time), although it would be shorter if you were just coming in for something very specific. She's a solo provider, meaning she has no staff, nurses, etc, so all appointments are with her alone and are pretty comprehensive. In order to make this work she puts a cap on the number of families in her practice, so there might be a waitlist. PM me if you want her info.

[waiting2bemommy]

Well the whole things from start to finish can be over an hour, but actual time with the doctor is around 10-20 minutes. If I have a question she does answer it. Now ds' appt was longer because he is older so she took time talking with me and then directly with him, but the baby checkups are pretty quick. I basically only go so that A) there is a paper trail showing that I provide "adequate" (by mainstream standards) medical care for the kids and B) I like to get an accurate weight/height on the kids. 

Generally the nurse or assistant takes us to weigh & measure dd, then we wait in the room, then the doctor comes in, looks her over briefly, hands me a few pamphlets about whatever stage of development/common issues i.e. milestones to look for, starting solids or weaning (weaning!!! at 6 months!!!!) etc. She then gives me the usual scare spiel about not getting shots (though to her credit, she does it politely) and finally asks if I have any questions.

[YayJennie]

I've got an awesome holistic family doctor, and she schedules an hour for WBV.  We don't always take that long, but that's what she has set out for us.  She goes over milestones, answers questions, weighs and measures, talks about safety and stuff and sometimes we just chat for a bit.  I love her and she is totally supportive of breast feeding and co sleeping and is OK with us not vaccinating.  And she's the only one in her practice, so no nurses, secretaries, and usually no wait!

[sere234]

Ours are generally 1 hour. We get there, wait about 5-10 minutes, DS gets weighed and measured, we wait 5-10 minutes, doc comes in and she checks him out, we talk, I ask questions, and we go. Last time he got his first vaccine so it took a tad longer. But we're usually in and out in 1 hour. We really like our doc too!! I don't agree with everything she says but about 90%, we're on the same page and she has always been very supportive of anything I am doing! That sounded odd- obviously I don't do bad stuff to my kid or I'm sure she wouldn't be supportive;)

[Asiago]

I suppose we are in and out within half an hour. The actual amount of time with our doctor though is around 10-15 minutes. 

[Monkeybean415]

Ours are really short as well! The entire appointment probably only takes 15 minutes...