As a parent, your job is to care for your child, keep your family safe and be prepared to make the best decisions for your children, especially in the face of a medical event or emergency. Every day, parents across the country are faced with seeking treatment for an acute medical need for their child. They check in at urgent cares, emergency rooms and pediatrician offices, and begin the journey of navigating the landscape of insurance companies, doctors and hospitals. The trip can be daunting, especially if you are unfamiliar with the healthcare world. It helps to have a friend in healthcare, one who can guide you through the process and give you inside knowledge. Consider me that friend.

The key to getting good healthcare is to be patient and persistent, and ask a lot of questions along the way. Many hospitals employ their own physicians, and insurance companies are contracted with certain physicians they consider preferred providers (usually for financial reasons). The hospitals and insurance companies often encourage their primary care, emergency department and urgent care physicians to offer referrals to their specialists first. However, you are not limited to these initial options. Most insurance companies will allow you to get a second opinion, and physicians who are asked directly will provide you with who they think is best, regardless of hospital or insurance affiliation. Making these requests may seem awkward at first, but it’s worth it for your family’s well-being and your peace of mind.

When you request a second opinion, you will find that your options for care may expand greatly. In the greater Charlotte area, there are many independent physician specialty groups. Groups like these are able to treat patients at more than one hospital, and often can help you choose the best place to receive care for your child.  Patients always have access to groups like these, but sometimes you need to be very specific in your request.

In an increasingly complex healthcare environment, you are the best advocate for your child. Patient choice is essential to good patient care. Do not be afraid to ask questions; a good physician will never be offended by that.

This blog was produced in partnership with Charlotte Parent. Click here for the original post and other parenting resources.

Most of us know the typical safety information that keeps us out of trouble during the holidays, but there are many unusual hazards surgeons fix during December and January. From internal “battery burns” to thumbtack inhalation, we pediatric surgeons have seen it all.

Read the dangers below and be mindful this holiday season! If something does go wrong, the doctors of Pediatric Surgical Associates are on-call 24/7 and always available, even on Christmas Eve/Day and New Year’s Eve/Day.

1. Inhaling thumbtacks.  When hanging garland or stockings, you might put a thumbtack in your mouth if you don’t have a free hand.  When children imitate or offer to help, they can forget and sneeze or “breathe in,” lodging the tack in their windpipes.
2. Small, round party food.  Popcorn and peanuts are a favorite snack for holiday parties.  If little ones are around, keep a sharp eye out for what your children are eating.  Anything that is small and round can be a choking hazard for children under four.
3. Toys with magnets.  Magnetic letters and numbers are great learning gifts to give.  However, if children mouth their toys, they can dislodge the magnets and swallow them.  Once ingested, magnets still attract one another.  If they end up in the wrong spot, they can connect and pinch whatever is in the middle, causing tissue damage.
4. Toys with batteries.  Any toy that contains a small disc “watch-style” battery can be a hazard, if the battery is ingested.  If these batteries leak, they can cause chemical burns internally that can only be repaired with surgery.
5. Poisonous plants. Did you know that holly, mistletoe and poinsettias can be poisonous for pets and small children? Though perfectly pretty, keep live greenery out of reach!
6. Hair tourniquets on toes. During cold weather, babies and young children can get hair or loose thread from inside their socks wound around their toes. If unnoticed and left for several hours, it can cut off circulation to the toe!

If Pediatric Surgical Associates doesn’t see you, which is a good thing, have a safe and happy holiday season!

If you have a child who needs medical care or needs a specific medical operation, a Charlotte pediatric surgeon will do the job. A pediatric surgeon is a licensed physician who graduated from a medical school and who has completed years of professional residency training for specialization in surgical aspect. They dedicate many years to learning about medical care for children and surgical procedures to diagnose, treat and perform surgery. This encompasses the preoperative, operative and postoperative management of young patients who needs treatment.

The spectrum of patients cared for by a Charlotte pediatric clinic includes infants, toddlers, school ages, teenagers and adolescents. They also perform medical surgery on fetuses with an operation called “neonatal surgery.” There are also general surgeons who are qualified to perform operations from young patients to the elderly. A pediatric surgeon differs in the sense that they specialize their care exclusively for younger patients.

A reliable pediatric surgeon has both a qualification and certification from a national surgical board. This certification is approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties. Before acquiring this certification, aspiring surgeon should complete a residency training program and should also pass an examination which focuses on a particular specialty.

You can also distinguish a Charlotte pediatric surgeon from his title. A surgeon’s formal title “M.D.” stands for “Medical Doctor” which is also an indication that a surgeon is board certified and that he or she passed an evaluation of their surgical skills. One example of this is: “Dr. Andrew M. Schulman, M.D. Board Certified.”

Pediatric Surgical Treatments

A pediatric surgeon performs a wide variety surgical procedures, including:

• Minimally invasive surgery
• Gastroschisis
• Pulmonary Sequestration
• Chest Wall Deformities
• Appendicitis
• Removal of masses, nodes and cysts

These are just few of variety of medical disorders of children that needs medical management from a Charlotte pediatric surgeon.

A child patient does not always have the ability to say what they feel considering their ability to speak and their age. They often tend to get scared and feel uncomfortable with some procedures done to them. A pediatric surgeon is also specially trained to cope with the behavior of children. They know how to make young patients cooperate and feel comfortable in the medical environment. If you are referred to Charlotte pediatric clinic you can be rest assured that they uphold the highest standards in surgical care.

At the most recent meeting of the American Pediatric Surgical Association (APSA), pediatric surgeons from all over the world gathered to discuss the latest in pediatric surgical care and research. Pediatric Surgical Associates (PSA) is proud to announce that its project, “HOME INTRAVENOUS VERSUS ORAL ANTIBIOTICS FOLLOWING APPENDECTOMY FOR PERFORATED APPENDICITIS IN CHILDREN, A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL,” won best clinical presentation at this prestigious meeting.

Perforated appendicitis occurs when appendicitis has progressed to the point where the appendix ruptures and leaks infection into the belly. Without post-operative antibiotic therapy, children are at high risk for a serious intra-abdominal infection.

Surgeons have debated for years whether home intravenous or oral antibiotic therapy is the best to prevent these infections.  In conjunction with Dr. Todd Heniford of Carolinas Medical Center and building on studies out of Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, we studied the best and most cost-effective way of preventing these infections.

We are pleased to report that our project confirmed that children who have had an appendectomy for perforated appendicitis can be sent home with oral antibiotics with no difference in the development of an abscess, and at a much lower cost, than if they were sent home on intravenous antibiotic therapy.

Pediatric Surgical Associates works to improve patient care and decrease medical costs in Charlotte, NC. We are grateful to have had this project recognized by APSA, and look forward to contributing to improving children’s surgical care in the future.