South Slope Pediatrics | Brooklyn Pediatrician Dr. Hai Cao, MD
  • Expecting? Book a Free Meet & Greet
  • 718.576.2450
  • Patient Portal
  • Pay Your Bills
  • Meet The Doctors + Team
  • SSP Free Classes
  • SSP NEWS
  • Insurance
  • SSP Culture
  • SSP 4 Good
  • SSP Blog
  • SSP LIVE Updates
  • FAQs
  • Contact
  • SSP Jobs

South Slope Pediatrics Blog

INTERVIEW WITH DR. CAO

3/29/2016

1 Comment

 
Picture
written by Jen #supermom

As a parent of two children who are patients of Dr. Cao, I can only say WOW…how lucky are we to have found the most genuine, caring, attentive, comforting and professional pediatrician.  I remember the first time I met him 3 and ½ years ago.  I had just given birth to my little girl at Methodist Hospital, and Dr. Cao (the resident doctor at the time), came to visit us in our hospital room to check in.  It was immediate – I knew right away that this guy had to be her pediatrician.  He instantly calmed me, made me laugh, and showed my daughter genuine affection and care.   I’ve always wanted to know a little more about the doctor we all love and admire so much, and I think many other parents want to too!


Let’s start from the beginning…when did you first realize you were interested in studying pediatrics?  What inspired you?
I remember very clearly I first wanted to be a physician before my family arrived in the US when I was 5.  My brother stepped on a rusty nail in a refugee camp in Indonesia and a physician cared for him.  The relief and comfort I saw in my mother’s eyes was invaluable.  
I had always wanted to be a physician, but it wasn’t until the last year of medical school that pediatrics was where my heart resided.  I grew up in a town of 10,000 and wanted to be the town physician.  However, the task of caring for 0-100yo seemed daunting.   0-21 was achievable and I knew I could be effective at my job.  In my rotations, the pediatrics rotations (surgery, oncology, anesthesia, NICU, newborn nursery) interested me and the kids just made me smile, even when we had to be there at 4am and leave at 11pm.



How did South Slope Pediatrics come to be?
I like to attribute the merit to my daughter. Four years ago my husband was at the playground in Prospect Park with our then 10 month old daughter, who, while playing with other babies, grabbed a toy from two adorable twins and started crawling away from the group. When she returned the toys, my husband started a conversation with the twin’s mom about what our dreams were and how we were looking to open my private office. We ended up leasing her property on 5th avenue after 5 months.


South Slope Pediatrics came to be because I wanted to realize a professional dream of running a progressive, service-oriented office without the constraints of larger institutions priorities where family is the focus and relationships are the tools we use to help parents through their amazing, and at the same hard, journey.



What brings you the most joy, as a doctor?  
As a doctor, I enjoy watching the parents grow – yes, the parents.  I love to see the fear and overwhelmed, sleep-deprived feeling being replaced by a “we got this” confidence and knowing that we helped to bring that about.



Do you have certain experiences as a pediatrician that have affected you which you can share?
The experiences I have had as a physician that mold me involve losses.  The first hour I spent in the NICU involved CPR on an extreme preemie that did not make it.  My last night as a student in pediatrics involved staying up with a 7 year old boy with AML that passed way too soon.  These experiences gave me perspective for my approach to general parenting/doctoring.



What are your other interests?  Many of us have seen you running Prospect Park at lightning speed…
Well, first of all, LOL and thank you. I really enjoy running. It helps me focus and stay in shape. I play tennis (I love playing with my 5 year old daughter whose backhand looks very promising).  I also play volleyball, I’m into gardening, I could spend hours fishing and snorkeling … and have a soft spot for garage sales.



As a beloved pediatrician and father, do you have any wise words or advice to share with us parents?
As a parent, my biggest advice is to not ‘over-parent’.  I say this in a lot of my meet and greets with expecting parents.  We all shoot for an A+ and the kids don’t care and are no better when be achieve a B.  Kids need to be given the space and opportunities to fall/fail.  End your day knowing you did your best and your child appreciates and loves you for it.  No one has been perfect and no one expects you to be the first!
1 Comment
isa
3/23/2020 04:48:00 pm

hiii daddy are you doing great!!!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Jen Valu
    contributor + supermom

    Jen Valu is the mom of 2 small children who were SSP patients. She enjoys spending time with her family, especially the silly dance parties and creative time with her kids. Recently relocated to the suburbs, she misses Park Slope terribly but appreciates the sanity that has come along with space and a yard. "Embrace the crazy" is her motto.

    Archives

    August 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    July 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015

    Categories

    All
    About Us
    Back To School
    Cartoons & Kid Stuff
    Family Activities
    Food
    Health
    Holidays
    Interview
    Kindness
    Parenting Tips
    Park Slope
    Pediatric Care Advice
    Playgrounds In Brooklyn
    Sports
    SSP Values
    Summer
    Things To Do In Brooklyn

    RSS Feed

Stay connected with South Slope Pediatrics
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
South Slope Pediatrics,
​Dr. Hai Cao, MD
​501 5th Avenue, Park Slope, NY 11215
718.576.2450
​
Monday - 8am-6pm
Tuesday - 9am-6pm
Wednesday - 12 noon -7pm
Thursday - 9am-6pm
Friday - ​9am-5pm
Call SSP
Email SSP
  • Expecting? Book a Free Meet & Greet
  • 718.576.2450
  • Patient Portal
  • Pay Your Bills
  • Meet The Doctors + Team
  • SSP Free Classes
  • SSP NEWS
  • Insurance
  • SSP Culture
  • SSP 4 Good
  • SSP Blog
  • SSP LIVE Updates
  • FAQs
  • Contact
  • SSP Jobs