I want to preface this by understanding that we did come in very late on a Friday (5:10pm appt). We appreciate the person who took our call and was able to find us an appointment to check in on our 16 month old daughter who was sick at a nearby Tribeca Pediatrics. As soon as we walked in, we could tell everyone was trying to pack up and leave. The gentleman who took my daughters oxygen measurements and temperature was very kind. Once the NP, Tayo Adjapon-Yamoah, came in, the impatience and poor bedside manners were palpable. We came in because our daughter was having a bad, throaty cough and we were worried about her breathing. The NP asked "had she been upset?" And I started explaining that we can tell her throat hurts a lot but she seems to get upset and cry when she coughs, catching my words to figure out how long she's been having coughing fits etc, and the NP says "just tell me if she's been upset, I don't need an explanation of why." We have similar back and forths through our brief appointment. When she offered to prescribe us a nebulizer vs an albuterol puff, we explained we were worried about not being able to fill scripts at pharmacy for a nebulizer because (a) my insurance didn't cover it and (b) last year when she had RSV they didn't have any at the pharmacy or any pharmacies nearby. She then condescendingly explained we can buy one on Amazon if they don't have or get one at a different pharmacy. It's Friday evening, and she told us we can go home and try this because if we went to emergency room they'd do the same thing. So we can monitor symptom improvement at home by doing this over next 24 hours. I was expressing to her my worry because of course I understand I can buy a nebulizer, but after her telling me we should monitor and do treatments at home for 24 hours, I don't want to go to pharmacy, have them tell me that we can't fill script for insurance or stock issues, and then order on Amazon for it to come tomorrow when I'd want to start treating her symptoms asap.
Ultimately, I came to pharmacy, and the pharmacist tells me that NP called in the script for a nebulizer (my insurance doesn't cover), and the albuterol was called in for a puffer and not a nebulizer. The kind pharmacist here is working currently on trying to approve it for using it for a nebulizer so I can start my daughters treatment today. Because of the NP's rushing to get me out the door, clearly there was a carelessness in double-checking that the prescriptions were properly prescribed.
I just overall think it's important for NPs working with young patients and their worried parents to simply have more patience and bedside manners to ultimately have more care and meticulousness in any follow up that may be required, especially prescription writing. I left feeling confused and talked down to. I would hesitate returning to see this NP. Only if I was in a similar position and couldn't see anyone else and was worried about my baby. And would hope to find her on a kinder, more patient day. read more