Living in Los Angeles comes with its own unique set of challenges and rewards. We have beautiful weather, incredible culture, and access to everything we could possibly need. But we also have traffic. We have busy schedules. And when you are a parent with a sick child, the glamour of LA quickly fades into a stressful panic. I have been a pediatrician for a long time, and I have seen the look of exhaustion in parents’ eyes when they finally make it into an exam room after fighting the 405 freeway with a feverish toddler in the backseat.
This is exactly why I structured my practice differently. I wanted to bring the “care” back into healthcare. Over the years, I have noticed a significant shift. More and more families are moving away from the traditional, high-volume clinic model and opting for a more personal approach. They are choosing me for their concierge pediatric sick visits, and honestly, the difference in their quality of life is night and day.
When your little one wakes up burning up or coughing in the middle of the night, you want answers, not an automated phone tree. You want comfort, not a sterile waiting room. Here are the seven main reasons why Los Angeles families are choosing my practice for their sick visits, and why it might be the right choice for your family too.
1. The Luxury of Avoiding LA Traffic
Letās be real for a moment. Dragging a sick child out of bed is hard enough. Putting them in a car seat when they are nauseous or achy is heartbreaking. But then, you have to factor in the drive. In Los Angeles, a “quick trip” to the doctor is rarely quick. It involves checking Waze, dodging congestion, finding parking, and paying for a garage spot.
When families choose me, they are essentially buying back their time and sanity. I come to you, or we handle things directly. There is no loading up the car. There is no motion sickness on the way to the clinic. You get to stay in your pajamas, and your child gets to stay in their warm bed. By removing the commute, we lower the stress levels for everyone involved. A calm parent usually leads to a calmer child, and that is the first step toward healing.
2. Keeping Your Child Away from Germs
One of the biggest ironies of modern medicine is the waiting room. To get your child treated for an illness, you often have to sit in a room full of other children who might have something completely different. If your child has a minor ear infection, the last thing you want is for them to sit next to someone with the flu or strep throat.
In my practice, the waiting room is a thing of the past. By utilizing concierge pediatric sick visits, you completely bypass the risk of secondary infections. Your home is a controlled environment. You know who has been there. You know it is clean. When I arrive, I bring the medical expertise, but I donāt bring the germs of fifty other patients with me. This is particularly important for families with newborns or children with compromised immune systems. Keeping your environment sterile and safe is a top priority for me.
3. Direct Access to Me (Not a Call Center)
We have all been there. You call the pediatrician’s office, and you press 1 for appointments, 3 for nursing, and then you sit on hold listening to elevator music. When someone finally answers, it is often a receptionist who has to take a message. Then a nurse calls you back hours later. Finally, you might get a generic answer.
That is not how I operate. When my families need me, they get me. I believe that when a child is sick, parents need immediate reassurance. They need to know if they should head to the ER or if it can wait until morning. Having my direct line means you aren’t playing telephone with your childās health. I know your childās history, their allergies, and their baseline personality. This direct line of communication builds a safety net around your family. You aren’t just a file number in a massive database; you are a family I know and care about.
The Value of Immediate Triage
Because you can reach me directly, we can often solve problems faster. Sometimes, a video call or a text with a photo is enough for me to diagnose a rash or a pink eye. This efficiency is a massive relief for parents who are juggling work and childcare.
4. Unrushed, Comprehensive Exams
In the standard insurance-based medical model, doctors are often forced to see a high volume of patients to keep the lights on. This results in the dreaded “15-minute visit.” By the time the nurse takes vitals and you get the child undressed, the doctor might only have five or six minutes to actually talk to you. That feels rushed because it is rushed.
I prefer to take my time. When I see a sick child, I want to sit down. I want to listen to the parents fully. Sometimes, the symptoms you see on the surface are just part of the story. Maybe the stomach ache is actually related to anxiety about school. Maybe the headache is hydration-related. It takes time to tease these details out.
My appointments are significantly longer than the industry standard. This allows me to do a thorough physical exam without holding the child down or scaring them. We can turn the exam into a game. We can take breaks. This relaxed pace leads to better diagnoses and a much more positive experience for the child. They learn to trust doctors rather than fear them.
5. The Comfort of Home Facilitates Healing
Children are incredibly sensitive to their environments. A cold, sterile exam room with crinkly paper on the table can spike a child’s anxiety. When a child is scared, their heart rate goes up, their blood pressure rises, and they clam up. This can actually make it harder for a doctor to get an accurate reading on their health.
When I see children in their own environment, the dynamic shifts completely. They are surrounded by their own toys, their pets, and their blankets. They feel safe. Because they are relaxed, I can often get a much better listen to their lungs and heart. I can press on their belly without them tensing up instantly.
Furthermore, I get to see the environment they live in. Sometimes, I might spot something in the home that is contributing to their illness, like dust collecting in a certain area triggering allergies, or the way a humidifier is set up. This holistic view is impossible to get when you only see a patient in a clinic.
6. Continuity of Care: I Know Your History
If you rely on urgent care centers or rotating doctors for sick visits, you lose the narrative of your child’s health. You might see Dr. A for a fever in January, and Dr. B for a cough in March. Dr. B doesn’t necessarily know how your child reacted to the medication Dr. A prescribed.
With my model, I am the constant variable. I remember that your son gets a rash from Amoxicillin, even if itās not highlighted in red on a chart. I remember that your daughter has a high pain tolerance, so if she is crying, itās serious. This continuity is vital for catching patterns. If a child is getting sick every month, a random doctor might just treat the acute symptom. But because I see the whole timeline, I might start looking for underlying causes like asthma or immune deficiencies.
For more information on when symptoms require immediate attention, I always recommend parents look at trusted resources like HealthyChildren.org from the American Academy of Pediatrics. It helps to have good information, but nothing replaces a doctor who knows your specific child.
7. A “Whole Child” Approach to Sickness
Medicine isn’t just about prescriptions. It is about nutrition, sleep, mental health, and family dynamics. When I conduct concierge pediatric sick visits, I am looking at the whole picture.
If your child has the flu, we aren’t just talking about Tamiflu. We are talking about:
- What fluids they are actually willing to drink.
- How to manage screen time while they are recovering.
- How to protect siblings from getting sick.
- Nutritional adjustments to boost immunity naturally.
I often find myself giving advice that goes beyond the prescription pad. We might discuss strategies for getting a stubborn toddler to take medicine or how to arrange the bedroom for better sleep during a cough. This level of comprehensive care is what modern parents are looking for. They want a partner in raising a healthy child, not just a mechanic who fixes a broken part.
Comparing the Experience
To visualize why so many LA families are making the switch, Iāve put together a simple chart comparing the typical experience with what I offer.
| Feature | Traditional Urgent Care / Clinic | Dr. Sabeti’s Concierge Care |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling | Fixed hours, often fully booked | Flexible, direct scheduling |
| Wait Time | 30-60 minutes in waiting room | Zero wait time |
| Exposure | High exposure to other sick kids | No exposure (Safe home environment) |
| Doctor Time | 7-10 minutes average | 30-60 minutes (Unrushed) |
| Communication | Call centers, answering services | Direct access to me |
| Comfort | Sterile, clinical setting | Comfort of your own home |
Investing in Peace of Mind
At the end of the day, everything boils down to peace of mind. Parenting is the hardest job in the world. It is full of worry and “what-ifs.” My goal is to remove as much of that worry as possible. Knowing that you have a doctor in your corner who is just a text away, who will come to your house, and who truly knows your child, changes the parenting experience.
You don’t have to feel alone when your child is sick. You don’t have to battle traffic or worry about waiting rooms. You can choose a different path. My families prefer this model because it respects their time, honors their health, and puts the child’s comfort above all else.
If you are tired of the assembly-line approach to healthcare, I invite you to see the difference for yourself. I am here to help your children grow up healthy, happy, and strong, right here in the heart of Los Angeles.
