Barksdale AFB Pediatricians.

You can have your child seen off base for the first 60 days after they are born, so then when our time was up i tried to find a way to be seen off base all the time because I loved our pediatrician so much and it was a no go. However, there are a couple different peds on base so maybe it is possible to switch to another. We use Dr. Thacker and I like him. My baby is 11 months old and although Dr. Thacker doesn't seem to be super outgoing and chatty, he is always kind to me and my child. He answers my questions thouroughly and seems very knowledgable. My son had a mild skull condition that required him to wear a helmet. Dr. Thacker was not familiar with skull abnormalities so he referred us to a neurologist to rule out more serious conditions. I don't know who you see know and if it is Dr. Thacker I am going to feel like a complete idiot, but if you are seeing one of the others maybe try and see if you can switch to him. I hope it works out for you!

K. E.

It's not just the pediatricians. I can't get an appointment at all when I call since they don't have sick call anymore. If you want to try and go for the referrals that's fine, but I haven't been very successful with those either. However, one thing they don't tell you (because it costs them more money) is you can change from Tricare prime to Tricare standard. There is a $150 deductible per year then you pay 20%. AND YOU CAN GO WHERE EVER, WHEN EVER you want! I swapped our family over when I was so sick that I couldn't get out of bed, and I tried the referral line. The "nurse" on the other end told me to "breath deeply into the phone." She then told me that she "...didn't hear anything. Go into the bathroom three times a day for 10 min with the hot shower running. I should feel better in about 10 days." That was the last straw for me. While I do have some out of pocket expense, it's worth not having the headache of trying to go to the dr. when I want or need to.

you know unfortunately you get that everywhere now a days...I used to have a doctor that diagnosed my child with asthma, which I know he doesn't have because I do and he has never showed signs of it and never ran any tests. I've had doctors mix medications that shouldn't be taken together and my kid cry for hours. It seems that the heart isn't in the field anymore. Don't get me wrong you do find those doctors that do put their heart and soul into their work, but it's becomming harder and harder. I would definately call tri-care and ask.

I too have had problems with the doctors at the Peds clinic. For one, I can't even understand my son's dr, dr. azzawe. My son had constant ear infections (like 6-7) and they wouldn't do anything...they just kept giving him antibiotics. I finally went to the Highland Clinic and they were dumbfounded over why Barksdale hadn't referred me to an ENT doctor (he had tubes put in immediately). I have found the only way to get referred off base is to call in for an appointment later in the morning, normally around 8:45-9:30. If they don't have any appointments available, they HAVE to refer you off base. Normally they will to the Urgent Care Place but if you ask for the Highland Clinic, they will let you. And you can normally get in the Highland Clinic on the same day if you call around that time. I love the Highland Clinic and they are really great in what they do. Also, another way to get an off base doctor as your primary pediatrician is if your child has a "special need" for example asthma or something else that requires a specialized doctor. Hope this info helps!

It sounds like you have already gotten a lot of good advice. I am curentlly going through the same struggle. Our second daughter is due in two weeks, and I am mortified to take her to the base med. facility because I cannot understand one word that the pediatrician says. Refferales are a pain in the butt!!! If you want to go off base all of the time, you have to switch to Tricare Standard. As far as the cost of this, I'm not sure. I know that it's not free like the Prime is, but I am pretty sure that you can stay on Prime if you want, while just your children are on the Standard.

A coworker of mine has been seen at LSU Health Sciences Center and Willis Knighton Pierremont. She and her family have Tri Care