New to area, looking for pediatrician recs...

[Anonymous]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the DC/VA area relocating from NYC. I am 18 weeks pregnant and looking for any recommendations for a pediatrician. Any suggestions would be a great help!

Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Where in DC or VA are you settling?

[Anonymous]

I'm in Alexandria but we will drive into DC or Maryland for a great doctor. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

OP- I don't want to second guess you, but the traffic around here is a nightmare during rush hour, and if you wake up in the morning with a sick child, you will NOT want to endure a potentially one hour + drive somewhere (like to Maryland) just to see your ped. I'm not sure if this is your first baby, but if it is... Know that you will have MANY visits to the ped., not just for well-baby visits but for a multitude of things that will come up (illnesses, accidents, rashes, whatever). Trust me, you will want a ped. close to home. I recently switched from a ped. I loved in Falls Church (Nova Pediatrics by the way, if that's at all convenient for you) b/c I moved about 15 miles away which can be up to 40 minutes in rush hour... After enduring the drive for a year with an unhappy/sick toddler in the car, I finally had to switch.

Just my 2 cents... hope that's helpful.

[Anonymous]

I have taken one of my charges to Children's Medical Assoc in Alexandria several times and they have always been nice there. They take the time to listen to my descriptions of the problem instead of talking over me, which I have experienced before at pediatricians with my own daughter. They prescribe antibiotics when medically indicated and not for every sniffle.

If you are looking for something out of the ordinary, such as delayed or not vaccinating or a ped familiar with AP, you may need to do a search for those specifics.

[Anonymous]

We just started using CMA (mentioned in 13:05 post above) for our son, born a few weeks ago. Every interaction we've had with them so far has been wonderful, we couldn't be happier with the practice. (Granted, we've only seen them for a few appts so far, but have been very impressed.) They have an Alexandria office out on Duke Street, near Landmark Mall & a Fairfax office out by George Mason. You can call them to schedule an appt to meet with someone there for a prospective patient orientation. We had ours int he Alexandria office, with the wife of one of the practice founders, now retired.

[Anonymous]

Another vote for CMA, we moved away from DC and I still miss the practice. www.cmanva.com is their website. Dr. Atiyeh (sp?) was the doctor we used for regular visits, but we saw many of the other docs, nurse practitioners, and the lactation consultant, and were very happy with it all. They also have nurses answer the phones all day, which is great when you're a new mom with questions. And they have a call in hour with the doctors every morning as well. Excellent customer service.