Treat me Please

Treat me please…
Pediatricians see children all of the time and most children keep their pediatrician until they are 18. When children are infants the parents stay in the room the doc. will ask how he is eating, sleeping, playing and etc. Does the formula upset his stomach and what vegetable does he really like? As time goes on the child will grow and the next visit the questions are how is he adjusting to school, does he seem behind to you developmentally if so I will refer you to Dr. Brown. The child gets older and pretty soon it is time for the parent to leave the exam room and give their pre-teen or teenager privacy. This fosters a relationship of trust and most importantly the pediatrician is able to speak privately with their patient. The first statement out of the child’s mouth is you are not going to tell me mom….and the answer is no. Of course the pediatrician is not going to tell the mother or father their conversation for the pediatrician needs a great relationship with their patients. Therefore, many pediatricians not only provide their discipline of care rather psychological care and the child just may need an ear. So what can you tell the parents? If the child is thinking about death is that a warning sign or rather the reality of growing up or just human nature. If the child is being bullied at school is that information to give to the parent or just a part of life. Not to trivialize certain issues rather it is important to assess the context of the conversation and the issues surrounding the situations. If your grandfather or mother passed away we would all question death. As well at some point in our lives we were teased we were not always this cool. I am sure that is still to be determined rather we have learned to accept ourselves. The point is a child truly autonomous when it comes to their care. The child does not decide their doctor, where they live, where they attend school, what car to drive, and etc. This is all determined by the parent. If my child was being bulled I would want to know and if my child was thinking of death I would want to know or would I want to know that if he has any issues he is able to seek counseling from an adult that I trust. I just hope the pediatrician will clue me by immediately suggesting that this is an interesting time in his life. That is a very broad statement but it says so much. Yet, at what time should the parent become informed of the child personal thoughts. The reality is as an adult no one truly knows our deep personal thoughts so what right does a parent have to their child’s.
KIRK
Article: What to Do When the Patient Says, ‘Please Don’t Tell Mom’
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/09/health/09klas.html?ref=science