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A PARENT'S GUIDE TO
DOCTORS, DISABILITIES, AND THE FAMILY
 By Suzanne Ripley

Questions to ask AFTER THE DOCTOR HAS SEEN YOUR CHILD

Questions about an illness:

Can you make a diagnosis at this time?

  1. Would you recommend a second opinion or a specialist for this illness?
  2. Should anything be done immediately? What should we be doing over the next few days? Are there any long term needs/concerns?
  3. When will the child begin to feel better? How long does this illness usually last?
  4. Are there any symptoms I should be aware of to monitor this illness? What are the indications that he/she is getting better? What are the indications of any complication or worsening?
  5. If I do notice any signs of complications, how can I contact you after office hours? In an emergency, whom should I call?
  6. When can he/she go back to school? Are there any special precautions which the school should be aware of?

Questions about general check-ups and development:

  1. Is he/she within the range of normal height and weight for his/her age? Is he/she growing at a normal rate?
  2. Is he/she developing normally in the areas of physical abilities, speech, vision and cognitive development?
  3. What are the age ranges typically during which children develop these abilities? Am I right to be concerned at this time? When should I become concerned?
  4. Do you think some developmental screenings should be done at this time? Do you administer any of these tests yourself as part of the regular check-up? (If the answer is no, you may want to have the doctor write a report indicating a concern over development in a particular area which you can send to the school staff working with your child to request that they test your child or arrange for appropriate testing. If your child is not school age, you may request these results be sent to the school system to request early intervention screening.)
  5. What are the next developmental stages we should be watching for? What can we do to help our child?
  6. Should we be consulting with the early intervention program and/or therapists for our child? Will you collaborate with the school by sending copies of your evaluations or writing a report specifying my child's delays which I can use in talking to the local school system?
  7. Can I give the school or early intervention team your phone number so they can call if they have any questions?
  8. Do you think we should be consulting with any other specialists at this time? If yes, what are your recommendations? Can you refer us? .

Questions about medications:

  1. When should I give this medication?
  2. When the prescription says "three times a day" does that mean every 8 hours including during the night, or three times during the daytime?
  3. When my child goes back to school, will he need to take this medicine during school hours or can it wait until he gets home at (time)?
  4. Should the child take this medication before, during or after meals?
  5. Are there any foods which should not be mixed with this medication?
  6. How long should he take this? Should he finish the bottle or stop when the symptoms go away?
  7. (If your child has other medications he is currently taking) My child is currently taking (medication). Can he take this medicine at the same time?
  8. Are there any possible side effects or allergic reactions I should be aware of? How will I recognize them? What should I do if I think he/she is having a reaction?
  9. Does this medicine need to be stored at a special temperature, that is, does it go bad if the medicine gets too hot or too cold?

Questions about tests:

  1. What do you expect to learn from these tests?
  2. Have these tests been given to my child before? Can we coordinate any of the earlier results with these?
  3. Does the school or public health clinic also do these tests? Is there any reason not to have them done there to save on expenses?
  4. How long will these tests take and what is involved in them?
  5. Is there anything I should tell my child about these tests which will help prepare him?
  6. Can he eat before coming?
  7. Are there any precautions I should take either before or after these tests?

Questions to ask about referrals to specialists:

  1. Specifically, why is this referral being made? Is this a second opinion or are we seeing the specialist for a diagnosis?
  2. . Are there records I should take with me or will they be sent in advance?
  3. Is this specialist comfortable with children like mine? Has he/she been fully informed about my child's disability or would it be useful for me to give him a call?
  4. Who will get the reports of this evaluation? Who will be interpreting them? Who will be discussing these reports with me?
  5. What are this specialist's rates? Can arrangements be made to help cover these expenses? .

Questions to be asked about surgery:

  1. What exactly will this surgery do or allow my child to do?
  2. What are the consequences of not doing it?
  3. . Would there be any advantage in waiting to see if the situation improves?
  4. How long will my child be in the hospital?
  5. How long will it take my child to fully recover from this surgery?
  6. Will we need any special equipment or help at home when he's released?
  7. What are the possible complications or side effects?
  8. Should we get a second opinion?
  9. Do you think any additional surgery will be necessary?

Questions about hospitalization:

  1. Can you estimate the length of my child's stay in the hospital?
  2. Who will be the attending doctors?
  3. Can I stay with him overnight?
  4. Is there any information I can give him now to prepare him for this?
  5. When is check-in time?
  6. Does the hospital have a program for children explaining about hospitals which would be helpful for my child?
  7. Will this be covered by my insurance?

References: Hickson, G. B., Stewart, D. W., Altemeier, W. A., & Perrin, J. M. (1988). First step in obtaining child health care: Selecting a physician. Pediatrics, 81, 333-338.

This article was written by Suzanne Ripley and is reprinted with permission from the:
National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities
P.O. Box 1492 Washington, D.C. 20013
1-(800) 695-0285 (Voice/TT) e-mail: nichcy@aed.org
http://www.nichcy.org

This document was developed by Interstate Research Associates, Inc., pursuant to Cooperative Agreement #G0087C3051 with the Office of Special Education Programs of the U.S. Department of Education. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of Education, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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