Doctors’ Notes
BackTeaching at Kids Plus
Kids Plus Pediatrics… as teachers? Absolutely! In all kinds of ways! Our practice was born, grew, and continues to evolve through a culture of teaching, learning, and constantly growing. (You can read more about that history here: http://bit.ly/KPStory) At Kids Plus, we teach (and learn) every day, and in many different ways…
IN OUR OFFICES
One of the best parts of our jobs is teaching parents and children not only how to treat illnesses and get well, but how to be well and stay healthy by eating right, sleeping right, and staying active — all of which are essential for everyone to do every day.
IN OUR EDUCATION CLASSES
We also love teaching classes — for expectant parents, new moms, breastfeeding moms, working moms, adolescent girls and boys, and (most popularly of all) parents who need help getting a quiet night’s sleep for themselves and their babies. Our teachers, whether they’re providers, lactation consultants, or experts in our community, all help to teach you what to expect, how to prepare for, and how to handle all the changes and challenges in your lives and families. We’re incredibly proud of the work we do in these classes, and we’ve only just begun. We’ll be offering lots of new classes and opportunities through the year, so keep an eye out!
IN OUR COMMUNITY
Many Kids Plus Providers give lectures to schools, day cares, community groups, professional groups, and employee seminars throughout the Pittsburgh region. We’re always excited to speak on a variety of topics to educate parents, expectant parents, children, and other professionals.
IN OUR TEACHING PROGRAM
The Kids Plus offices are a teaching facility — in culture, and in practice. For years, many of our providers worked along side our fearless leader, Dr. Pai, who taught many of us how to become caring, compassionate physicians and how to treat every patient with the integrity and attention they deserve. We continue the tradition he began with us by continuing to actively teach nursing students, medical students, physician assistant students and Pediatric Residents in all of our offices.
What does this mean to our patients? This means that every once in a while, your children may be interviewed and examined first by a student who’s training with us. After conducting an exam, the student then presents the patient to a Kids Plus provider, who reviews the history and repeat the exam. Collaborating together, they determine a diagnosis and treatment plan. The students are learning, have done all of their required classroom work and training, and now need to complete their educations by putting their considerable knowledge into play in an office setting.
Kids Plus is proud to be a teaching facility — and all the more so because many of us started here as students ourselves. We’re honored to play a part in training future pediatricians, and humbled to think that by teaching them the Kids Plus way, we can help to produce new generations of excellent and compassionate medical providers who’ll care for new generations of children and families.
We always welcome any feedback you have on any of the providers, employees, or students you encounter in our practice. And if there are other classes or services we can offer to help you survive and/or thrive in all those newborn-to-college years, we’d LOVE to hear your suggestions!
Dr. Alicia Hartung, a Kids Plus Doc since 2001, is a shareholder in the practice.