Reply to ADD son 18 now, pediatrician will not prescribe his meds, who to call?

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Reply to "ADD son 18 now, pediatrician will not prescribe his meds, who to call?"

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[quote=Anonymous]OP, was there any communication from your child's pediatrician that the meds would not be renewed past a certain point? It would have been irresponsible not to have given you notice.

I am a pediatrician. This is a conversation I have had with many families. I am always surprised when people assume that I will have to continue prescribing medications, even if we have discussed the policy in place where I work for the endpoint to the relationship.

Many pediatricians received training for young adults into the typical college years. Some did not. Some did, but they restrict their practice to age 18 and younger because of lack of experience or continuing medical education for taking care of older patients, or because of the high demand and need for services by children who do not have other options (unlike people who have reached majority age).

Some of us have malpractice insurance that has restrictions on who we are covered seeing. Some of us are under contracts that have the same effect.

Unfortunately, among many families, there is a sense (right or wrong) that pediatrician's care is more involved and patient-friendly than adult medicine. It is a struggle to get young adults to "graduate" from a pediatric medical practice, if they and their family are happy with the care they received and/or do not feel they can find (or do not -- sometimes, but it happens -- want to make the necessary effort to find) a new provider with whom they feel as comfortable.

Most pediatricians give notice of impending temporal deadlines, but I am sure some do not. Most are also familiar with the process of enforcing those deadlines, over which they themselves may or may not have much control.

Nobody should be faced with an abrupt endpoint without warning.[/quote]

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