Need a pediatrician in a snap? There's an app for that

Kids never get sick at a convenient time. It's always on the weekend or when your day is already jam packed. Add another child or two into the mix; and getting in to see the doctor feels like you're scheduling a UN World Summit. One company wants to help you out.

PediaQ lets you summon help from your smartphone.  
  
Jon O'Sullivan created the app after he spent 25 years in the healthcare industry. He said he realized children tend to get sick multiple times a year. Parents want to get them treated as soon as possible.     

"With three kids, it's hard to get everyone out to the doctor when only one is sick," said Woodlands mom of three Maya Williams. He family got to test PediaQ in a mock house call. Once you install the app, you just type in some information to request a visit from a pediatric specialist. The app shows you the nurse practitioner in your area, along with their qualifications.

"She called me back within 3 minutes of me filling out my request," explained Williams. "And she was at the house within 10 minutes."

Nurse practitioners with PediaQ can do almost everything a doctor can do.

"We can do strep testing, flu testing, RSV testing. We can check them and do a urine culture," said Linda Stevenson, PediaQ's head of nursing. 

PediaQ is available in The Woodlands and a 10-mile radius around the area on weekends now from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. This fall, they plan to provide services on weekdays from 2 p.m. until 10 p.m. They focus on hours when your pediatrician's office is closed or wrapping up at the end of the day. PediaQ nurses will come to your home or wherever you need them.

"I can call them from the mall and she can show up at the mall," said Williams. "Or I can call them from the baseball field and she shows up there."

In fact, Stevenson has made a call to a baseball field in Dallas, where the company started taking calls last May. She says the older brother couldn't miss an important baseball game, but his sister was sick.

"I examined the sister on the tailgate of their SUV while the brother was playing baseball; and we got everything all taken care of," said Stevenson.

The convenience of a house call will cost you $25 plus your normal pediatrician in-network co-pay; but PediaQ is waiving the convenience fee now through the summer.

"What we've found is that once people experience PediaQ, they won't ever do anything else. They love it," said PediaQ's O'Sullivan. 

The PediaQ app is only available for IOS now; but if you don't have an Apple device, you can go to their website and request a visit from your computer. 


About the Author:

Passionate consumer advocate, mom of 3, addicted to coffee, hairspray and pastries.