Atiyeh Bassam Md - Northern Virginia Pediatric

I have to say I am SHOCKED at some of the other reviews. Our 5 children have been patients of Dr. Atiyeh's since my son was born in 1999. It's true that the practice has boomed over those years and it's also true that sometimes the wait can be long, especially if you are there for a sick visit and are being worked into an already full schedule. But overall I could not ask for better care for my children. Dr. Atiyeh knows all of my children by name and knows their health history as well as their personal talents and interests. Sometimes it can feel a little rushed but he always makes time to speak to and check on all of the children. For example if I take my son in for a well visit and he notices the 2 year old has a runny nose he has no problems stopping to check her out too. The only time we have had a problem with this practice is with one particular nurse and even she has gotten much better over the years.

I have never once experienced any of the doctors blowing off my concerns or downplaying my children's symptoms. A couple of examples; a few years ago my daughter had an extremely swollen lymph node. Rather than just writing it off as an infection Dr. Atiyeh measured the radius, ran blood tests, prescribed antibiotics (in case it was an infection) AND insisted on a follow up visit. Just this past year my son and I developed a strange, creepy rash on our feet and ankles. Because Dr. Atiyeh was not available we saw Dr. Myer. Not only did she take the time to get a full history of where we had been, what we had been doing, etc. she also got out her book of skin infections to describe to us exactly what she thought he/we had and why. We followed up with Dr. Atiyeh the following week and the office was very prompt with giving us our lab results. Dr. Myer herself even called to confirm that we received our lab results and to review them with us.

My final word of advice is this, if you are attempting to choose a pediatrician for your child first make sure your philosophies match, (if you are all natural and tend towards homeopathy this is NOT the place for you) and then weigh the opinions of parents of older children who have some history and perspective against first time parents who tend to be overprotective and over reactive to completely normal things carefully when making your choice.

Posted 11/11/09 | Report Abuse

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We switched to a different doctor and we couldn't be happier. My son saw Dr. Atiyeh for the first year of his life. He came down with viral infections two weeks out of a month. His temperature very oftens ran up to 105, and we made lots of visits to see Dr Atiyeh. On top of that, he frequently vomitted. Here are what we experienced at the office:

1. Regarding Dr. Atiyeh:
-- Never been thorough. He never spent more than 5 minutes with my son. I came in with a list of questions. He stopped short of answering them all and I had to stop him at the door.
-- Very quick on prescribing antibiotics but could not tell me what kind of bacterial infection my son had. At my son's current doctor office, such case would be followed for several days with observation, physical exams, saliva swabs, and maybe blood test and x-ray.
-- Never could figure out what went wrong with my son frequent vomiting. Prescribed high doses of anti-acid (he went straight to the strong stuff like prevacid) for an infant (4 months old). He kept insisting us that what my son had was normal for almost a year. We went ahead and checked it out with a pediatric GI doctor. My son is now treated and well.
-- To my experience, his making it to "TOP DOCTOR" list did not and does not mean anything.

2. Regarding the office:
-- The office is like a zoo with lots of patients in a compact place and nurses running around trying to get you in and out.
-- Still, the wait time is at least 30 minutes (to be called). Then you wait some more when you are in.
-- EXTRA CHARGES for lab work, which could be a lot on top of your co-pay.
-- Billing office is not responsive to your attempts to settle bills.
-- Front desk was not helpful (could not mail me a document because hmm..they did not have stamps.)

So..if you are going there: good luck. If you are planning on choosing a doctor there: please reconsider.

Posted 11/02/09 | Report Abuse

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I've been very pleased with the care my 3 children have received at Northern Virginia Pediatrics. It's a large practice and I've learned with doctors to see depending on the child and the malady de jour. Each doctor has their strengths. The doctors with whom we're most familiar are Dr. Kelly, Dr. Mouchahoir, and Dr. Halpin (yes, she's part time and hard to catch). Each is the fave of one of my kids, who are always treated with respect and feel safe. As a result, they are quite comfortable talking to their doctors. Many of my friends and neighbors also go to this practice and claim their own favorite docs, which speaks well of the group. I've also found the nursing staff and assistance to be quite capable. It's a big practice and a very busy place, so you do need to patient.

Posted 09/05/09 | Report Abuse

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My two children have been patients of Dr. Atiyeh since 2002. His calm and sensible approach to diagnosing children and prescribing medications has been a reassuring constant in our very busy lives. We have also seen Dr. Baldrate or Dr. Mouchahoir, and both have been equally good with my children. As most pediatricians do, they see a lot of normal childhood illnesses (flu, colds, etc.) that can mimic worse things (pneumonia) and panic parents, so they tend to approach things cautiously and try not to overdiagnose or overprescribe antibiotics. But they are always careful about saying "if this does not improve in 3 days, call back or come back" when there is a doubt. This has worked out for us--they have accurately diagnosed my kids 95% of the time. So I have no complaints about the doctors.

The staff and the nurses, on the other hand, must be overworked or easily distracted, because they haven't managed to learn the kids' names in the 7 years we've been patients. It's a little annoying. They don't really listen to the children, either. That's even more annoying. And they do a lot of things by rote, which is off-putting.

Finally, for the parents who are set on avoiding vaccinations. I apologize in advance if this sounds insensitive. I am just as leery as the next person about the control of big pharmaceutical companies over health care in this country, and about the possible links of vaccines to autism. But I grew up in a country where a lot of children did not get vaccinated, and I know first hand the damage contagion can cause to people who are exposed to polio, hepatitis, tuberculosis, pertussis (whooping cough) or other easily controlled illnesses. Please do us all a favor and put the good of society above your fears of how the vaccine is administered. If you want to, you can ask the doctor to administer each vaccine individually. If they give you a hard time, insist. You're the parent, after all.

I recommend NOVA Pediatric Associates and will continue to take my children there.

Posted 05/20/09 | Report Abuse

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I posted a while ago about having issues with vaccines with Dr. Kelly and completely getting the brush-off from Dr. Barakat about having my son looked at for food allergies AS THEIR OWN NURSE SUGGESTED. After Dr. Barakat didn't even bother to look at my son or the pictures of his rash that I had brought with me, I made my son an appointment with an actual allergist. Guess what? He does indeed have a food allergy (to fish and shellfish), and the rash he had was a symptom of that. Skin and blood tests confirmed it very quickly, and I have to carry an Epi-Pen with me in case my son has a reaction. I shudder to think what could have happened if I hadn't trusted my instincts and taken my son to a doctor who actually took the time to look at my son and listen to me.

Posted 05/18/09 | Report Abuse

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we have been with Northern Virginia Pediatrics for 2.5 years, since my twin girls were born. We decided to switch to another pediatrician recently. I am writing this note to warn other parents.

I'll start with our last (and thanks god, final!) experience with them. One of my girls had some coughs and congestion around her chest for about five days. Then, she got the strap throat at a birthday party. Needless to say, she started running a high fever (102F) and did not respond significantly to fever reducers. So I called the Northern Virginia Pediatrics in the morning (as soon as they opened). The appointment I got was with Dr. Kelly, who was not our doctor, at 11:15. We go there and wait until 11:50 as usual before a doctor shows up (you have to wait minimum 30 minutes for the doctor there). She shows up and checks my girl's ears, throat, etc. and then asks for the strap throat test (so far so good). It turns out she does not have the strap throat, and we are sent home. At night, my girls started running high fever again, this time reaching 103.5F so we took her to the ER. It turns out my girl has the strap throat AND the beginning of ammonia. CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? I was full of anger and felt like a victim, a victim of the ignorance and incompetence of the Northern Virginia Pediatrics Ass. staff. Why did I make the mistake of assuming this pediatrics group was capable of delivering a caring and competent health service? The answer was that I was referred to them by a colleague of mine and I thought she wouldn't go there if they were not good. You know what, she never had to find out, lucky for her, so she never had the experience we had with them, that's why.

In short, for your kids' sake, do not choose this place as your pediatrician. All they tell you (after 5-10 minutes with them and more than an hour with their very rude and ignorant staff) is that your kid is fine, make sure she gets some motrin and lots of liquid. Gee, if my girl is fine all the time, why do I need you, and obviously from our latest ER visit, she can occasionally need professional, medical help. But I guess that is not you area of expertise.

Posted 04/30/09 | Report Abuse

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My sisters and I (31,30 and 22) were patients of NOVA Peds and our children are now patients of Dr. Halpin. She is WONDERFUL! The best doctor I have ever met. However, she is difficult to get it to see. Four times now I have had to see other doctors who told me that my child was "fine" only to have to return a couple of days later to see Dr. Halpin because my daughter was NOT fine. I am not one of those mom's the calls the doctor for just anything. I know when my child is sick. My daughter contracts Bronchitis very easily and around Christmas I knew that she had bronchitis. Dr. Halpin had no appointments so we saw Dr. Kelly who told me that she just had a cold (even though she had a fever of over 100 for 5 days). We ended up back in the office a couple of days later because my daughters bronchitis had escalated to pneumonia!
My most recent call, today, resulted in being on hold for 15 minutes to be told that Dr. Halpin had nothing available for 3 days and then was hung up on "maybe accidentally". So I plan on driving over there on my lunch break to make an appointment.
Be prepared to be on hold for at least 15-30 minutes when you call to make an appointment and the staff at the front desk tends to act very annoyed if you need anything other than to just pay your bill. Although, there are a couple of women who have been there for awhile that are wonderful! Connie, in the lab is amazing! So there are some really great things about the practice but also some big problems!

Posted 03/09/09 | Report Abuse

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I just read the previous entry and have to put my two cents in. NOVA is fantastic -- we particularly love Dr. Kelly (she is our primary care physician) and Dr. Baldrate. They are both young doctors (mid-30s) with young children.

NOVA Pediatrics tells you up front (when you go for an initial interview) that they follow the recommendations of the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics). That includes receiving vaccinations at the recommended times set forth by the AAP. This is based on the best medicine and knowledge available today. Additionally, it protects younger children who are not yet vaccinated, like infants, (I have one toddler and one infant who go there) from contacting some of the diseases vaccinations prevent (like chickenpox). (Although I had chickenpox as a child, I would prefer that my children don't suffer it -- if they never have chickenpox or another Herpes Zoster virus as a child, they can't have Shingles as adults, and they can't have the serious [albeit rare] complications one can suffer from chickenpox, measles, etc.)

In short, these doctors are the best of the best in the area. If you don't agree with mainstream medicine, however, it may not be the best place for you and your child(ren). (And they do space vaccinations out if it's in the child's best interest. I have a friend whose children were preemies, and they received their vaccinations later than normal.)

Posted 09/25/08 | Report Abuse

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I switched my son to Nova Pediatrics because I had heard such wonderful things about them. It was further away from our house than our previous pediatrician, but I thought it would be worth it. Wrong. During my first visit, I talked to the doctor about wanting to delay and/or space out my son's vaccines. Dr. Kelly gave me a really hard time about it and called parents who want to veer from the traditional vaccination schedule "silly." She really tried to give me the hard sell on the chickenpox vaccine, which we had chosen to skip. She greatly exaggerated what an inconvenience it would be for my son to get chickenpox, although just about everyone of my generation had chickenpox, and it was no big deal.

During my second visit, I saw Dr. Barakat. My son had been getting rashes that I suspected were possibly caused by a food allergy. I had called the nurse help line and spoken to one of the nurses (who was very helpful, by the way), and she said that I should bring my son in if he continued to get the rash. He did, so I did. They were running 45 minutes behind (a VERY long time if you have a fussy toddler!), and when I finally saw the doctor, Dr. Barakat spent literally less than 5 minutes with me. He looked at a different rash that my son had, pronounced it contact dermatitis, then tried to leave. I said that I wasn't there about that rash; I was there to get my son checked out for food allergies, as the nurse had suggested. He just told me to bring him back if he kept getting the rash and they'd test him then. Um, I thought that's why I was there in the first place?

Needless to say, as much as I hate to be a doctor hopper, we will be switching my son to a different pediatrics practice. Very disappointed!

Posted 08/18/08 | Report Abuse

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This practice provides excellent doctors, nurses and good front desk. However, it provides terrible staff, especially the billing office and record office. They make mistake but never say sorry, mail to you the correction copy without an apology. You have to call and remind them so that they will do it even they have 1 month in advance or you will hear from them all the time " we will do when we have a chance". When you ask them to check again for billing issue, they tell you they are very busy, they don't want to waste their time for small $.

If you decide to choose excellent doctors from this practice, you wish there is no billing/administrative issue. If there is billing/adminisrative issue, you are not lucky because you have to deal with the inside staff (billing/record office) when the issue occur. They will make you feel like you are beggar.

Posted 07/07/08 | Report Abuse

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We have been with the practice since 2000 and have had generally very good experiences. It has grown tremendously in the past 5 years and so now there can be long holds on the telephone and in the waiting room. One day the person who put me on hold, left me there while she went to lunch!! But, we have gotten the medical care we needed, if not from one doc at one visit, from another doc and the next; persistence pays off.

We would not switch!

Posted 01/29/08 | Report Abuse

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Wonderful, attentive staff and good, experienced physicans make this practice (as another review put it) "head and shoulders above the rest." It's a busy place and the waiting room can get chaotic but its worth the wait. You get quality care from doctors who spend time with you to answer your questions and really make the effort to get to know each patient.

Posted 10/18/07 | Report Abuse

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We used to go to another busy pediatrics practice nearby but switched, b/c we were unhappy w/quality of their docs. I agree w/other reviewer that wait here can be long, but despite being a busy place, the staff is very pleasant & we love Dr. Myers. She's a sharp physician, experienced, attentive & well worth the wait! We hear fabulous raves about other docs here, so it must be very well managed & run. I'm kicking myself for wasting my time at the other place!

Posted 09/25/07 | Report Abuse

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After dealing with military medicine and another private group in the Arlington Area, we were glad to find Northern Virginia Pediatrics. We have always been able to get a same day appointment. Over the past 2 years, our 3 kids have seen 5 of the doctors and they have all been great. Our regular doctor, Dr. Mouchahior seems really up on things and our kids ages 13, 7 and 1, all like seeing him. Wish they did have a "sick" waiting room and an elevator. The parking situation is so much better than at Bethesda and Arlington Hospital.

PROS: Nice staff, good doctors and easy parking.
CONS: No sick waiting roomand some stairs.

Posted 11/14/05 | Report Abuse

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We love our pediatrician, and all the doctors in the practice seem great, ut we often wait over an hour. And there is no seperate waiting room, so you will have your newborn in the same room as kids hacking up a long, which really bothers me

Posted 06/14/05 | Report Abuse

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