Drs: The Good, The Bad, The Dangerous

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One of our best nurses, she taught us how to swaddle.

Most NICU mom's have gone through enough Drs that you can tell real quick what kind of Dr you have on your hands.
The first thing you must know and truly believe is, Drs are NOT God. Period. 

The first warning of a bad/dangerous Dr is if they treat you like an idiot.  A good Dr will listen to you.   Listen to your mommy instincts.  If they make you feel like the dumbest mom in the world, pack up your kid and LEAVE!  Would you take that attitude from your butcher?  How about your dentist?  Your grocer?  Don't take it from your Dr.  They work for you.  Does this mean they should be a wimp? of course not.
This does mean that you shouldn't take something at a Drs word just because it is a Dr.
A woman that I know personally (will not use her name) Had a OB who didn't listen to her. He used forceps on first daughter, and damaged her and her daughter's face. (Dangerous)  The next delivery did much better, with a different Dr.   Her first Dr appt with her second daughter, she was told to coat her baby in Vaseline until she the stump fell off and she could have a submersion bath.  (BAD)
We had one resident who blew me off every time I tried to get him to discuss kangaroo care or Lil' C.   He didn't even know what it was! (Bad)  So, I went over his head, to the Neonatologist. Who looked over the chart and checked the numbers and said he didn't see any reason why not.  This was the second time I got to hold him, and the first happy time :D. This was also when he got to move to his next bed. (Good)
Another mother I was know was told by her OB AND her Pediatrician that  she isn't making much milk and needs to supplement until her milk comes in.  BAD!  What is the problem with this? Two Drs told her this right?  It's a HUGE, HUGE Booby trap!   Her LO is only days old.  A newborn doesn't/can't eat much at a time.  Colostrum, the most important milk, only comes out in small amounts.  It's concentrated with stem cells, major immunity and all sorts of important stuff.  Giving formula this point fills the baby's belly with, well formula, instead of with colostrum.  The colostrum is the most important to get to the baby, even if the mom doesn't breastfeed anything else.
When it comes to breastfeeding, to many Drs don't have a clue.  In medical school most Drs cover breastfeeding about as much as you and I covered the urinary tract in biology class.  Would you want someone like you or me diagnosing your kidney stones?    So how do you know if your Dr has a clue?  Two ways-  Know the Booby Traps and/or see if your Dr has a breastfeeding certification.   The good ones who don't have a clue will pass you on to a IBCLC or your local LLL.  The bad ones.. will give you bad advice, and belittle your efforts.
We have a good Pediatrician who listens, and is pretty good.  I personally think she is one of the best in the area.  This past week, Lil'C started getting hives.  We went into our Ped's office but unfortunately had to see a different Dr.  We ended up seeing Dr. Vaseline.  She came into the room with a 10cc syringe full of Benadryl.  Anyone else get mommy alarms on that?  When we told her we thought it was an allergic reaction to Orange Juice, she blew us off.  "I have never seen that before"  She ran a strep test.. It came back negative, she decided to give him an antibiotic and Benadryl anyway.  She didn't even listen to me when I told her which pharmacy we used. So when we went to pick up the antibiotic, it wasn't there...   It wasn't there 2 days later.   We went back to our Ped's office and got to see our Ped this time.  She discontinued the Benadryl, which had been making him grumpy and act like his heart was racing.  She also retested the strep test (which came back mildly positive) and switched his antibiotic.  The antibiotic that the other Dr had prescribed?  Can negate one of Lil'C's heart meds.  (DANGEROUS!)
Listen to your mom instincts.  You are a part of the medical team, you are the one who is emotionally invested.  If they don't listen to you, don't listen to them.