Referral Always Needed?

[Anonymous]

Shannon refluxed and turned purple today while sitting upright in her stroller. If I had been asleep, or someone hadn’t been watching her I’m terrified of what may have happened. She couldn’t breathe!

I’m at the end of my rope and would really like to consult a pediatric GI doctor, since we seem to be getting nowhere with her primary care practice. My only issue is that all the pediatric GI specialists I seem to find require referrals from a primary care doctor- and I am sure her pediatrician would not be willing to do this since he thinks reflux in babies is completely normal.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Do most or all pediatric GI specialists require a primary care referral?

[Anonymous]

I am so sorry that that happened today, i can only imagine how scary that was. I think the reason they want a referral is so that insurance will cover the visit. If you are willing to pay out of pocket then I think you probably can get in without a referral. I would call and ask if they will see you without a referral if you pay out of pocket. Or another option would be to see if your doctor would give you a referral for the baby… other moms have found that family physicians are more willing since they understand how bad reflux can be pain wise. Good Luck with whatever you decide to do.

[hellbennt]

Looking for a GI:
see if you find one here:
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=660

if you find a ped GI then you can either pay out of pocket the first time,
then work it out w/ your ped

you can ask ped GI to contact ped for referral

you can FAX your ped and TELL you want a referral to the specific ped GI

[Author]

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