Interview with Dr. Scott Goldstein

What are your clinical interests?

I am very involved in parent education. Giving talks to parents groups is a way for me to express my life-long interest in learning and teaching. I speak on a range of topics, from child developmental milestones, to how a child’s environment affects her health, to potty training.

I am also a “vaccine champion” for the American Academy of Pediatrics. There are a lot of questions parents have about vaccines that are not easily answered just by going online. As a vaccine champion, I give lectures to other pediatricians and healthcare providers about the most up-to-date medical evidence and how to answer parents’ common questions.

How does a child’s environment affect her health?

One topic parents often ask me about is whether or not kids should eat organic foods. I’m very interested in questions like this. If you ask me today, the answer is that medical evidence has not yet demonstrated a health benefit to eating organic food. But studies are ongoing, and it can take a decade for an organization like the American Academy of Pediatrics to establish guidelines once research has begun. Do I try to give my kids organic food when I can? Yes. But would I say it’s bad to eat non-organic food? There’s no evidence yet to support that conclusion.

In the meantime, I can help parents judge how to make decisions they feel comfortable with. For example, kids drink a lot of milk. When kids eat or drink a lot of something, it’s worth being more careful about what is in the product. It would not surprise me if at some point the American Academy of Pediatrics came out with a guideline that children should only drink milk that is hormone- and antibiotic-free.

How do you approach to sleep training for families with different schedules?

Sleep is a big topic, but at our practice, we believe that there’s no one right way to sleep train your child. My approach is to give advice based on a family’s parenting style and schedule. I can tell parents what has worked for other families, and I speak to them about their lifestyle so that I can give them realistic suggestions.

If parents are committed to co-sleeping, for example, I certainly wouldn’t suggest to let their baby “cry it out.” And if they don’t get home from work until 10 pm, I’m not going to suggest putting their child to bed at 6 pm. We work out reasonable goals together, and I can refer families to sleep coaches if they are interested.

What is your practice style?

As pediatricians, we are here to answer questions. I like it when parents bring a list of all their questions to the visit. There are so many different topics we could talk about, so I think it’s best to start by addressing all of the parents’ questions, so they can get what they came here for. Then, if any important topics have not been addressed, I ask a few of my questions.

I am punctual. If a patient needs to leave for a soccer game at 2:30, I will definitely get her out in time for her soccer game.

When it’s appropriate, and I get the sense that parents are comfortable with me, I also enjoy a good sense of humor and like to joke around with my patients.

How do you make young children feel at ease?

There are ways. Sometimes they work, and sometimes they don’t. I always tell medical students that when you walk into toddler rooms, it’s important to open the door and enter the room slowly and quietly, and to speak in soft tones with the parents. It is a bit like approaching a snake. We then make sure to examine the child in the parent’s lap, and to show the child what we’re going to do before we do it.

If a toddler starts screaming his head off, however, there is very little you can do. At that point, I just try to be very efficient with the examination, so that their anxiety doesn’t last any longer than it has to.

What’s your favorite thing about pediatrics?

Working with kids keeps me feeling young. It’s hard to be in a bad mood at work when you’re caring for children every day. My first patients when I started practicing are now teenagers and beyond, and I’ve really enjoyed watching them grow up. It’s very rewarding to care for several kids in a family, and then see them out in the community over the years.

What experiences have shaped your career?

Having my own kids certainly widened my perspective. In my experience, being a pediatrician doesn’t necessarily make you a better parent, but being a parent does make you a better pediatrician. I understand how parents feel when they’ve been up all night with a child who is coughing and crying, because I have been there myself. I’ve become more empathetic about all the anxieties and challenges that come along with parenting, and that helps me be a better communicator.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I used to do improv comedy, and although I don’t have the time for my own comedy anymore, I still love listening to comedy and going to live shows. I’m also a big reader. I think you learn so much from reading, so I read a couple of books every week.