Obtaining a Second Opinion

Sometimes in the course of life, whether for special needs or not, we need to obtain a second opinion. Whether for ourselves or our children, it can be hard to know where to start. I took Jaxson to Dallas at the beginning of January, and it took months of research and planning. I wanted to pass on some knowledge I learned during that process and hand out some tips for those that need to travel out of state. For the purposes of this post, everything will be related to your child.

The first thing you need to ask yourself is what you want a second opinion for. Does your child have a diagnosis that you question? Is there a doctor recommending surgery and you're looking for other options? Have you heard of a fantastic doctor who specializes in kids like yours? There are a number of reasons to seek a second opinion, so be sure you know what you want to answer before you start. For us it was easy; we just had to wait on Jax to stop having surgery so I could make plans. Since Jaxson had multiple skull surgeries in his first two years, we knew we needed a craniofacial specialist.

Once you know what you need, do research (if you haven't already) on what typical treatments for this diagnosis will be. You can look up non-profits that fund research, organizations designed to support, and use the National Institute of Health website to gather the information.

Next you can start looking up doctors and hospitals that specialize in your area of need. If you aren't on any Facebook groups that link to what you need, start there. Facebook is not just a great way to network and find people who understand you in situations where others don't, but it's a great place to learn. When you are in a specialized group, you can find support and give support equally, and others are happy to share their experiences with various doctors and hospitals. Once you get a few names, do your research. Google every doctor and hospital and see the reviews, check out recent articles in medical journals, ask other parents you know who are in a similar situation and may have heard the names. You'll want to make sure that the doctor you seek is associated with a known board and that the hospital is ranked well among its peers.

When you have the search narrowed down to the doctors of your liking, it's time to contact your insurance company. Start the process of seeing if your insurance will cover a second opinion, especially if it is out of state. Because Jaxson is on Medicaid, nothing out of state is covered, which I was happy to know well in advance. If you find out that your insurance won't cover part or any of a second opinion appointment, go back to those non-profits and organizations you looked up before. I was able to obtain assistance with a hotel and airfare through the Children's Craniofacial Association, and I know they would have helped with other expenses had we needed it. They required a simple application and a few documents to support our need and that was it. They were very easy to work with, and I like to think that other places that offer such things operate in a similar fashion.

While you're working with your insurance company, go ahead and contact the doctors you have selected and find out what they require to obtain a second opinion. Every doctor requires records, of course, so make sure you have copies.

Electronic copies can sometimes be accepted, so you'll need to create a zip file or use Google Drive in order to send them. I was lucky enough to find a doctor who was willing to email with me initially, and after many back and forths, I was able to determine that we needed to go see him. Most doctors will not do this, and I admit that I was very fortunate in this instance, but I found it by doing a Google search on a name given to me by a friend on Facebook. Turns out that we went to see this doctor, and I also admit that his office staff is second to none, including the staff we see on a regular basis, whom I absolutely love. That's something that I put a lot of stock in when looking for a doctor, if you don't have a happy staff then something is wrong! And these ladies aren't just happy, they are efficient and they follow through. Also very important in my opinion.

After you have gone through this process, you've weighed the pros and cons and you've determined that you want to go through with the appointment. The hard part is done, the next step is to actually make the appointment. Make sure you set it out far enough that your finances won't be strained. You want as much time to plan and save as possible! Once the appointment is made, you can begin your flight and hotel search.