In Search Of Dr for Diagnosis

[Anonymous]

Looking for a pediatrician specializing in diagnosing ADHD, Autism Spectrum, Sensory Processing Disorder, Hyperlexia, etc. Specifically need covered by GEHA (United Health Care) insurance. I have had NO luck calling Children's National, (after dozens of automated messages, I get sent back to the beginning). Earliest appointment I could find was for April. Any suggestions? I'm in the Arlington School district, Pentagon City. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

So are you looking for a developmental pediatrician or someone who can do all the neuro-psych testing?

Get on the wait list with Kennedy Krieger - they have a terrific clinic. I called them on a Friday, was in there the next Monday as they had a last minute cancellation. They told me a 6 month wait but many times you don't have to wait that long.
They accept United.

[Anonymous]

I'd get on the wait list for both Children's and KKI. Even if it's months out (not unusual), there are often cancelations as PP mentions. Just take the one that comes up first.

[Anonymous]

Tip for Kennedy Krieger: Keep calling them and reminding them that you're available any time with even X hours notice.
Sometimes they get a cancellation that is that afternoon or the next day and they don't have time to go through the waitlist and then wait for the people to call them back so the will sometimes take you if happen to be lucky and call them when they are in this situation.

Children's is much more methodical about their waitlists and they told me they rarely have cancellations.

[Anonymous]

I went to Kennedy Krieger and I totally recommend them. very extensive and very helpful. children's was a waste of time. 2hours and that was it.

[Anonymous]

We had the opposite experience as PP. We didn't have a great experience at KKI but we learned a lot from Children's. It could be the tester. We had a relatively new one at KKI and a very experienced one at Children's.

[Anonymous]

Take whatever appointment you can get. I got a cancelled appt. at Childrens with 1 day notice and took it. Otherwise the wait time was 8 months.
Keep calling back to remind them of your availability. I got another (not dev ped) appt at Childrens with a can you leave now time frame and I took it. Otherwise the wait was 3 months.

[Anonymous]

Try MindWell-they do the whole gamut. We took our DD there ---he has SPD and hyperlexia and they really helped us.

[Anonymous]

You can try Stixrud too. The problem with Stixrud, Mindwell, etc and not Children's and KKI is that they don't take insurance so you will have to pay upfront and put in for reimbursement.

We have GEHA and got back ~1/3 of the cost for Stixrud.

[Anonymous]

I was able to get an appt in January at Children's National in Fairfax. I called 571-226-8380. Appt was with Bennet Lavenstein.