MonsterFool has already blogged about Sam’s well-baby visit. But I wanted to include a couple of things that she didn’t.
- The pediatrician gave Sam a book —Rainforest Colors. We were so uncertain that this was really the case, we had to ask at the nurses station on the way out to be sure. They grinned, and confirmed — every well baby visit from 12-months on, you get a book when you go to the doctor’s.
So far, I’m really impressed with Kaiser Permanente. Whether this plays out this way in the end or not, it feels like the doctor gets to decide what she thinks is best for Sam. We consult, she scribbles on a piece of paper, and it’s done. They didn’t have the infant flu shot in stock yet. We can come back later to get it. We can just show up. It was suggested we call … not to schedule another appointment, just to make sure that the infant flu shot is in. It feels so different from nearly every other medical practice I’ve been in. It feels more relaxed that the medical staff feels like they get the freedom to do what they think is right for the patient.
And 2) On our way out, just after we’d asked about the book and crossed into the waiting room, a nurse calls out for Samantha. I think, “Oh we left something” or “Oh, they were joking about the book“, or … I didn’t know why they might be calling us back. But they weren’t calling us! They were calling another Samantha in to see the doctor. When we chose the name Samantha, we had no idea how popular it was. We didn’t know any Samantha’s personally (though Carolyn knew a Samantha character from Sex and the City, and I knew a Sam from Las Vegas). We had no idea it was in the top ten girl names for 2005 (number 8!) until after she was born. But out here, it seems like Samanthas are all over the place. In addition to the above incident, I have a co-worker who’s 2-year-old daughter goes by Sam (Samantha’s her middle name). And, I have a co-worker named Samantha — fortunately she usually goes by her Linden name.
It must be rough for all of them knowing I’ve got the real Samantha!