About Pediatric Partners of the Southwest
Pediatric Partners of the Southwest was founded in July 2005 with the mission of providing high-quality, compassionate, and holistic pediatric care to the babies, children and adolescents of our community. We have compiled a wonderful team of board-certified Pediatricians, Physician's Assistants, and Pediatric Nurse Practitioners who specialize in the care of infants, children and young adults. Pediatric Partners' board-certified pediatricians also serve as Mercy Regional Medical Center’s only inpatient pediatricians, providing around-the-clock coverage for newborns as well as hospitalized pediatric patients.
Our goal is to partner with parents and guardians to provide every child excellent, comprehensive, and informed healthcare.
PPSW has implemented a comprehensive, team-based medical home system in which the Pediatrician or Advanced-Practice Provider uses the expertise of other professionals in order to offer whole-person care to ensure all aspects of a patient’s well-being are addressed.
Virtual Visits
Save time with personalized virtual visits on your phone or computer when your child has minor health issues like pink eye and diaper rashes. With telemedicine, you can save both your time and money and be seen in the comfort of your own home. Telemedicine is covered by insurance at the same rate as in-person visits.
Telemedicine Technology Requirements - please review to help make sure your visit goes smoothly.
Consent for Telemedicine Visits - please sign and return to our office
YOUR PPSW DOCTOR. YOUR INSURANCE. AT YOUR HOME.
Appointment and Telephone Triage
PPSW endeavors to serve the children of our rural community by being open six days a week and providing same-day sick visits for our patients by appointment- if you feel your child needs to be seen that day, we will make every effort to schedule an appointment.
We value our relationships with our patients and their families. We encourage parents to schedule well visits with the same provider, to foster an ongoing partnership.
PPSW offers a Nurse Triage Line during business hours to answer questions from parents; we also provide an after-hours nurse telephone triage system, at no charge to our patients, so that families can reach a medical professional at any time, day or night.
Empowering Children to
Decrease Pain and Anxiety
PPSW uses several modalities to reduce the pain and anxiety that can be associated with medical care. Therapy dogs often visit in our waiting room and create a relaxed, fun atmosphere. Many different topical pain control methods prior to injections or blood draws can lessen the discomfort. Sucrose water may be used for our younger patients.
Our Integrated Behavioral Health clinicians can assist children and young adults with guided imagery before and during a procedure.
Vaccination Philosophy
We firmly believe in the effectiveness of vaccines to prevent serious illness and to save lives.
We firmly believe in the safety of our vaccines.
We firmly believe that all children and young adults should receive all of the recommended vaccines according to the schedule published by the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
We firmly believe, based on all available literature, evidence, and current studies, that vaccines do not cause autism or other developmental disabilities.
Vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health-promoting intervention we perform as healthcare providers, and that you can perform as parents/caregivers. The recommended vaccines and their schedule are the results of years and years of scientific study and data gathering on millions of children by thousands of our brightest scientists and physicians.
We recognize that there has always been and will likely always be controversy surrounding vaccination.
The vaccine campaign is truly a victim of its own success. It is precisely because vaccines are so effective at preventing illness that we are discussing whether or not they should be given. Because of vaccines, many people have never seen a child with polio, tetanus, whooping cough, bacterial meningitis, or even chickenpox, or know a friend or family member whose child died of one of these diseases. Such success can make us complacent about vaccinating. But such an attitude, if it becomes widespread, can lead to tragic results.
We recognize that the choice may be a very emotional one for some parents. In some cases, we may be requested to alter the schedule to accommodate parental concerns or reservations. Please be advised, however, that in most situations delaying or “breaking up the vaccines” to give one or two at a time over two or more visits goes against expert recommendations, has no medical benefit, can put your child at risk for serious illness (or even death) and goes against our medical advice as providers at PPSW. As medical professionals, we feel very strongly that vaccinating your child on schedule with currently available vaccines is absolutely the right thing to do to protect all children and young adults. Please feel free to discuss any questions or concerns you may have about vaccines with any one of our providers.
For those parents/guardians who choose to not have their children vaccinated and wish to obtain a non-medical exemption, they will need to complete an online module provided by the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE). The web link for this module is below and once completed you can submit the Certificate of Non-Medical Exemption to the school or entity requiring the form.
The online module can be found here:
Vaccines and the Diseases They Prevent: Imm Ed Module (state.co.us)
Great parent websites about vaccines
CDC: Deciding To Vaccinate Your Child
Vaccine Education Center (from Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia).
PPSW Careers
Pediatric Partners of the SW looks for energetic, talented, innovative people for career opportunities.
PPSW is dedicated to ensuring equitable access to high-quality compassionate care for our patients and their families, fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace for our colleagues, and cultivating and sustaining relationships with our community partners that broaden our reach and deepen our understanding in the communities we serve.
Our approach to diversity is simple—it’s about embracing everyone. We are committed to building a team with a variety of backgrounds, skills and views. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.
Please contact PPSW Practice Administrators Alex Schackel or Amanda Harrison regarding other openings at 970-375-0100
Health Information Exchange
PPSW is part of a Health Information Exchange (HIE) program. This is a system whereby medical information can be shared instantly between labs, primary care offices, hospitals, and specialty care providers in a highly secure manner. This allows rapid access by a medical entity to a patient's medical information, without relying on letters, faxes, or phone calls. Certain portions of a medical record, such as mental health conditions, alcohol or substance abuse treatment, or genetic testing are protected by privacy laws and require written permission to access. This HIE is built in conjunction with the Colorado Regional Health Information Organization (CORHIO). Visit www.corhio.org for more information.
