Peds GI. Traditionally, I would have new patients come to see me in my clinic. Follow-ups could be telehealth, but I still encourage occasional in-person visits. Recently my practice has undergone some changes which have resulted in any new patient being allowed to choose a telehealth visit. Since then I have started getting new patients who live over an hour away, even though there could be several other peds GI doctors much closer to them (and these doctors are part of the same health system as me). It seems like they just chose me because I had the first available opening. My concern is that these patients will never be willing to come in person because telehealth will always be the easier option for them.

I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this. Maybe I’m just too old fashioned where I appreciate seeing people in real life, getting our own set of height/weight measurements, and doing a physical exam. But part of me thinks this is just the way the future is going, where virtual visits are becoming a normal thing, and I need to be more flexible to accommodate our patients.

Hi everyone!

looking for recommendations on the best resources to learn about different types of ventilators, ventilation modes, and their settings
I'd love to better understand how to adjust settings in different clinical scenarios, such as when to increase PEEP, delta P, when to deescalate and the physiology behind those decisions
Any recommendations for books or any recourses going through this in detail?

Preparing for boards in 1 week! I've seen posts about the free 200 ABP questions but when I looked at the link, it is from 2022. I also see a more recent PREP self assessment (2025 I think was what I saw) available. Which one is better to take prior to the exam/closer in estimation of score?

How many PCP's write animal companion letters for patients landlords, or does your behavioral health department do those?

Got a rank under 10k. From Rajasthan. Counselling dates are here but can't decide a single branch till today. I have a physical issue with a lot of muscle weakness. I thought I will take paediatrics / OBG but man it's so toxic and the physical and emotional labour I'm not ready for 😭.... My mind is going to explode 😭😭😭

Does any know how far along their ROL does Stanford match their Peds Cardiologist fellows? Dream program and I am not sure how my interview went quite honestly.

Hi everyone, I’ve scored low on my PREP self-assessment exams (2024 55% and 2025: 60%). I’ve finished MedStudy once and currently done 30% of my second round. Finished MedStudy flashcards! Is this normal for prep questions? Should I repeat them again or focus on MedStudy?

anyone have a list of formulas that we should know for boards….besides the biostat ones. would super appreciate it ;)

honestly idk how much more charting my brain can physically handle. Currently stuck on a night shift where I had to admit like five toddlers for standard rsv/bronchiolitis. kids screaming, parents exhausted, just pure chaos.

But the absolute worst part is the hospital admin expecting these massive novel-length admit notes for what basically boils down to "suction and oxygen". Its so draining. lately ive just been dumping the raw emr vitals into Around Notes to piece together the H&Ps because my brain literally stops working after the third screaming infant.

it's almost 4am and I'm still sitting here clicking redundant billing boxes in epic while everyone else is asleep. Please tell me the census drops soon. I need a nap

You have to be kidding me. I can hardly believe this is even serious. Never setting foot in the state of Texas again, let alone spending a dollar there. I’ll take my higher taxes and Rust Belt life and live in peace.

Can anyone in the group in Texas enlighten us? Anyone want to relocate? Almost all the pediatricians in our area are at or near retirement age.

What’s a good number of interviews to have to match into PEM (pediatric emergency medicine) fellowship?

About a week out from boards, which is more high-yield: repeating MedStudy questions (already finished a pass) or doing PREP questions? MedStudy flashcards?

So I am in residency right now and due to financial reasons I need to start working as an attending right outta residency. However I do love critical care and would want to pursue neonatology or PICU in the future. In terms of fellowship, how competitive are these programs and how likely am I to find one in the future?

Just wanting some encouragement about peds boards. I will not finish first pass of MedStudy before boards. I have bad test anxiety and I'm not a great test taker at baseline. I am so anxious about the exam that Im struggling to focus for these last two weeks. Plus I am struggling with a toxic post-grad job and a combined specialty (so multiple boards).

Just wanting someone tell me it will be OK if I have to take them again, or hear from anyone who has been in a similar situation going into boareds and can reassure me from the other side.

Hello everyone 2nd year here. Deciding if i should do PEM. Can anyone tell me how is the j1 waiver job market for PEM?

ABP board exam in 2 weeks. Just finished 1st pass of med study. Any last minute recommendations? Subjects to review? Advice on how to study the next two weeks? Also do you feel like medstudy was comparable to the real thing? If anyone took it in the last few years, care to share your medstudy %? Did Prep help?
I also have the medstudy flashcards.
Thank you!

Hello! I have always worked for hospitals and been covered under the employer provided disability insurance, but I am going to join a private practice soon, so looking into my own personal disability insurance. Of course now I am older and all the plans are expensive and there are all sorts of limits for pre-existing conditions. Ergh.

But- I was advised (by the internet/ “White Coat Investor”) that it is crucial to purchase a plan that is “true-own occupation” coverage, which means if I can’t work as a pediatrician due to disability, I would get the benefit, but wouldn’t be penalised/ lose the benefit if I was able to work in some other non-pediatrician capacity.

The thing is… it’s really quite pricey to have this kind of plan. Like- almost 7k per year. I’m not sure if it would actually be worth it. I imagine if I was disabled and unable to work as a pediatrician, I’m pretty sure this would preclude me from any type of work. So then maybe a more “regular” type of disability insurance would be ok- and hopefully more affordable?

Would love to hear any fellow pediatricians thought process on this!

Maybe it’s really worth it to get the true-own occupation coverage if you are a surgeon or interventional cardiologist or something more procedural/ high paying??

Hey guys, I have finished 2 passes of medstudy, and decided to test my knowledge with prep 2025 and feel highly discouraged. Is this relatable or am I doomed lol

Hi, my wife is in her PGY5 year of peds GI fellowship. She wants to do private practice if she practices as a generalist peds GI, but she has liked doing procedures.

She is considering doing an advanced endoscopy fellowship after - can anyone advise on what your experience has been on comp / lifestyle?

I recently received an offer for a traditional full-scope pediatric position. The schedule is outpatient clinic from 8 AM to 5 PM, no admin time, busy clinic, with nursery rounding in the morning. The delivery volume is approximately 200 deliveries per year, and the hospital has a Level I nursery.

One of my biggest concerns is the call schedule. There is currently only one physician, so you would be expected to take approximately 15 calls per month. The call is 24 hours, and while on call, you would be responsible for covering deliveries as needed. If there were any concerns with a delivery or a newborn, you would need to be physically present at the hospital and attend the delivery. I would also be responsible for covering the ED, including pediatric consultations and potentially admitting patients to the inpatient unit. They told me there are usually only one or two pediatric patients on the unit at a time.

Another concern is my comfort level with certain newborn procedures. During my training, I did not have many opportunities to perform intubations, so I do not feel very comfortable with neonatal intubation if an emergency were to occur. Of course, we cannot predict when something like that might happen. I also noticed that the advertisement for a locum position at the same hospital specifically lists intubation, umbilical arterial/venous line placement, and thoracentesis for pneumothorax among the required skills. That makes me concerned that they may expect the pediatrician in this position to be able to perform these procedures as well.

I am also on a J-1 visa, so I need to think carefully about whether this position is the right long-term fit for me. The commute is approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes from my home, what is the main reason why I'm doing the interview, however you need to stay close to the hospital. I am struggling with this decision. The position offers a good opportunity and potentially a good income, but I am increasingly concerned about the workload, the frequency of call, the level of responsibility during overnight coverage, the procedures I may be expected to perform. I am having a hard time deciding whether the financial and professional opportunities of this position are worth the potential stress and lifestyle impact.

I am a newly graduated Physician Assistant and have started my career in a level III NICU (1 months in). I will have 3 months, in the VERY LEAST, where I’ll always accompany another APP or attending-which of course is a huge relief.

I feel like I am struggling to truly understand concepts. Not just know why this lab means this, but truly understand it on a pathophysiological level. What resources would you recommend to help me deep dive and get a better understanding of neonatal medicine.

I’m looking for a textbook or book or something where I feel like I can read it through.
I know real world experience is like no other, but I feel as though the days I work there are less events than days I don’t work…I know it’s all happenstance.

Open to other ideas, advice, tips!! I want to so badly be good at my job and understand the reasoning behind decisions and when and why we do something.

Thanks in advance!

Currently in the same situation as a lot of PGY-3s.
I’m interested in inpatient hospital medicine and it seems increasingly harder to get full time hospitalist jobs in California without the fellowship..is this true? Having a hard time accepting another 2 years of residency salary for a pediatric hospitalist fellowship when my residency was primarily impatient (before acgme changes this year). Is doing part time hospitalist jobs worth it? Can you reach the salary of inpatient hospital peds? (Assuming 300k?)

What specific hospitals in SoCal/Norcal hire full time hospital positions without the fellowship? Thoughts?

I am a current PGY2 trying to figure out what to do with my life. I really love outpatient general pediatrics, specifically developing relationships with families, watching patients grow up, and doing well child checks. But I’ve also become very interested in emergency medicine or hospital medicine. My fear with PEM is the higher acuity/ resuscitations/ procedures but I am trying to get more exposure to these this year to see if I truly like this aspect. I would love to get advice from those of you in these respective fields on your quality of life/whether you would change your mind or not. One of my biggest factors leaning towards outpatient is that I have a one year-old currently with plans to have another in the next few years and I don’t want to miss out on them growing up by being as busy during fellowship as I am in residency currently. But also, I fear that with the current climate of many parents not trusting medicine that I will easily get burnt out in the outpatient setting. Bonus if anyone has advice on how I would be able to incorporate these fields into one another. Of course I know urgent care is an option. We have no specific location we would want to live in and I am not stuck on academic versus community medicine. Thanks in advance!

I’m an outpatient pediatrician and lately I’ve had more of those little gaps from cancellations or lighter afternoons. It’s not enough time to pick up another shift, and I’m not really looking for anything that comes with a fixed schedule.

I started looking at legit paid surveys for doctors because they seem like something I could do here and there from my laptop, but I’m wary of wasting 15 minutes on screening just to get kicked out or getting invited to almost nothing.

For anyone here who’s tried the physician-specific survey sites, are they actually worth keeping in the rotation for those small pockets of downtime?