Depending on your geographic location, you may have only a few practitioners from which to choose. If this is the case, the first thing to keep in mind is not to limit yourself to Pediatric practices. General Practitioners can be just as capable, if not moreso, in caring for your children and your whole family. Also, you may want to consider a Nurse practitioner who works in conjunction with a doctor's practice in providing care for your children and family. I take my daughter to a Registered Nurse, Nurse Practitioner Licensed in Homeopathic/Naturopathic Medicine. I am forever indebted to my friend, Stacey, who referred us to her. She has been a true gem of a person and I trust her completely when it comes to my health and my daughter's health. You should also consider driving a little farther, if necessary, to you practitioner. Considering that you may only visit once or twice a year at maximum, driving a greater distance would not be such an inconvenience. Proximity, while it makes life a bit easier, should not be one of the deciding factors when choosing a healthcare provider.
Natural Parenting is not an easy path -- it means taking a very active role in the care of our children, and not all doctors respond well to this kind of involvement -- not because they dislike parental concern and involvement -- but they are just not accustomed to parents who are knowledgeable about nutrition and who trust nature as opposed to medicine. I must admit, I responded with some surprise the first time I was chided for not vaccinating my daughter. I even had my feelings hurt when I was asked to leave a pediatric office where we visited when my daughter had a rash on her nose I wanted investigated. But, now, I have toughened up and gotten a new perspective. One of the first realizations I came to is that I cannot expect to be welcomed into the "enemy's camp". Although I may not see them (the Pediatric Practices) as "the enemy", they are looking at me as "the enemy". I appear to them as a menace to their smooth-running practice. Someone trying to "buck the system". What they don't see is a mother just wanting the absolute best for her children -- because they see dollar signs when they take on new patients, especially infants coming into the practice every 2 months for the first 2-3 years of their lives with Mommy's checkbook in tote. But, the granola mom's like myself are just a pain in their pa-tooties -- because we show up once a year or not at all or only when the child has a mild illness or broken bones or something of that nature and it makes them uncomfortable because we don't subscribe to their way of doing things.
