Pediatrician

What is a Pediatrician?

The following job responsibilities are common for individuals in pediatrician roles:

• Monitor the growth and development of patients and notify parents of concerns
• Educate parents and patients on the differing needs of children as they grow and age
• Schedule and administer immunizations, and perform regular physical examinations
• Treat patient illnesses and injuries
• Education teenage patients on safe-sex practices to ensure long-term health

A Day in the Life

Pediatricians are physicians who specialize in providing medical care for newborns, toddlers, children, and teenagers. They treat diseases, injuries, systemic disorders, and infections which affect children from birth to age 18. When patients arrive at the pediatrician’s office, the pediatrician reviews the patient’s case history, conduct interviews of both the patient and parents, performs physicals and diagnostic tests, and analyzes all findings to issue either a bill of good health or a prognosis and treatment recommendation.

A major responsibility of pediatricians is observing the growth and development of patients. The pediatrician monitors both physical and mental development to ensure that patients are developing naturally. When a pediatrician notices that a patient is not developing as expected, he/she must perform tests to eliminate suspicions of developmental disorders. The pediatrician may diagnose issues like ADHD or autism, and may refer the parent to other healthcare professionals for treatment.

As children get older and move into their pre-teen and teenage years, pediatricians commonly see the patients without parents present. This allows the pediatrician to discuss any concerns with the patient privately. The pediatrician is tasked with educating older patients about sexually-transmitted diseases and safe-sex practices. While parents can be bothered by not being able to enter the exam room with their teenage children, it is important for the pediatrician to get honest information about the child’s behaviors to ensure lifelong health.

Typical Work Schedule

Pediatricians can have variable working schedule, although most of them have to work full-time following the regular working schedule of 40-50 hours. They are most commonly working between 9 am – 5 pm and unlike other doctors, they rarely need to work in the evenings or the weekends. You may still have to answer some phones calls outside your working schedule from concerned families. Most pediatricians get 4-week vacation yearly which makes this job a good choice to maintain life/work balance among the medical careers. You may also consider spending few hours each week helping the community by education, professional group activities as well as providing medical care to the needy who cannot afford it.

Projected job growth

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of different physicians in general is expected to increase by 4% from 2019 to 2029, yet for pediatricians the demand for the job is expected to decline by 2%. This rate will often vary by location and the community. Recent technologies have helped in better education of the families reducing the number of the visits to the physicians. Additionally, nurses and assistants have recently been allowed to perform many of the physician’s routine tasks. Other factors that affects the employment of pediatricians include the changes in healthcare reimbursement policies which could cause customers to seek fewer visits to pediatricians.

Employers will require you to receive a board certification through the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP). You can improve your opportunities to advance in this career if you choose to further specialize in pediatric surgery or specific medical conditions which can help distinguish you among the competition.

Typical Employers

Pediatricians can work in different healthcare settings including working for hospitals of different status and sizes whether state, local or private. In addition, you can work for private practice offices as well as different outpatient care centers. Pediatricians can also work for different health maintenance organizations as well as various community health centers and public health clinics. Some pediatricians may prefer to work for schools while few may be employed by the military and government to help with various tasks related to community serving tasks.