Family doctor shares which parents are most difficult and pediatricians agree ‘100%'

A physician in California who goes by Dr. Andrew Cassidy on social media says the most challenging aspect of working in pediatrics isn’t caring for the children — it’s dealing with the parents.

“100%,” Cassidy, who practices family medicine, lamented in an Instagram reel that has resonated with fellow healthcare professionals and teachers, many of whom share similar frustrations. 

“I think a lot of young doctors and nurses are like, ‘I love pediatrics, I want to work with kids,’ but what they don't realize is that kids don’t bring themselves to the appointments,” Cassidy tells TODAY.com. 

One common source of tension arises when a youth athlete comes in with a sports injury, Cassidy notes. He may advise rest and time off from play, only to be met with resistance from parents eager to keep their child in the game, convinced they’re raising the next “Michael Jordan or Wayne Gretzky.”

“The kid just wants to keep his mom or dad happy, and so they work through it — and it doesn’t end well,” Cassidy says.

He says many parents also come into appointments already defensive, bringing a general distrust of doctors that can make even routine visits feel confrontational. 

“Sometimes they’ll come in disagreeing, not because they have a reason — it’s because they don’t have confidence in the healthcare system and they've decided they don't like you,” Cassidy explains.

Ultimately, Cassidy says that most of his experiences with parents are “great,” creating a sense of shared goals and a “united front.”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Cassidy finds that the parents who are often the easiest to engage with are teachers and nurses.

“They understand the situation,” he says. “They recognize that we all want the best outcome for the child.”

Cassidy’s Instagram video — captioned, “Pediatrics is the hardest field to work in! (Explained by a doctor)” — quickly went viral, garnering thousands of comments.

"Peds RN for 15+ years. This absolutely 100%," one person wrote.

“Peds RN for 15+ years. This absolutely 100%,” one person wrote.

• "Pediatrician can confirm. But a lot of parents can also be awesome once you build a long-term relationship with them. I treat my patients like family. I’m always amazed when they remember small details about my own kids."
• "This ... I wanted to become a pediatrician growing up but after two months of pediatric rotation, I changed my mind because of this reason."
• "Parents are the reason why I won’t do peds."
• "I work in pediatrics and that is 100% the truth! I could tell you stories about cute kids with crappy parents..."

Cassidy noted that some parents took his frustration to be about the number of questions they ask during appointments — but that, he says, isn’t the case.

“Yes, sometimes it can be a challenge when you want 55 questions answered and there’s only 15 minutes,” Cassidy said. “But most of the time, it’s not a problem — you’re just showing that you care. We’re more than happy to answer them; we just might need another appointment to get through them all.”

This story  More from 온라인카지노사이트 News: