Rose City Pediatrics

I had some trouble here and ultimately decided to transfer my kids to my naturopath.
The office space itself is lovely and so kid friendly – I really wanted to love it. But almost every time we would pull up to the parking lot for an appointment, Dr. Janie and her office assistant were standing outside smoking, and often they would follow behind to smoke again as we left. I might be out of the Portland norm to look down on this habit, but it’s difficult to smell during appointments and also hard to have full confidence in a care provider who is outwardly making such an unhealthy habit public.
It was challenging to get through to ask Janie a question when my kids were sick. It seems like having just two people running the office was too much for them. One day I called at 9am and didn’t hear back all day; finally I called back at 4pm and was told they had been very busy that day without an apology. This scenario was not uncommon.
I’m still sad that it didn’t work out. My kids loved it there but I just wasn’t comfortable with these couple things.

We loved Janie and so did our 2 month old baby girl. She was so warm and inviting it put us first time parents at ease. This office didn’t have that sterile doctors office feel, instead felt like we were bringing our baby to aunt Janie’s house! Kind of silly but that’s how we felt. She did a through checkup of our little one and held her with so much love. We can’t wait to come back and see her again. Also she gave us her personal phone number for emergencies or and questions we might have! I’ve never had any doctor do that before, it really shows how much she cares and is committed to her patients and families. I was slightly skeptical to choose this Pediatritian at first because of the one bad review, I’m so glad I gave her a chance! You should too, you won’t be let down. Over and out!

We just we in to see Janie and Emily for an urgent care sick visit. They took great care of my little man again and calmed this anxious mother down. I cannot PRAISE these women more. We are very lucky to have them. ANYONE who is thinking about coming here, DO IT. You will not be sorry. These are good people who care. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!

BAD BAD BAD… ROSE CITY PEDIATRICS at S.E. 36^th and Powell with Janie Huff-​Slankard!!! BAD!
After a few years of happy service this relationship went DOWNHILL fast! At no less than four of my children’s appointments Janie Huff-​Slankard, the Pediatrician at Rose City Pediatrics, was smoking immediately before caring for my children. My youngest was a four day-​old newborn on one of these occasions! She smokes directly in front of her office building either on the steps out front or in her convertible car (with the top down) in the very small parking lot in which you will certainly have no choice but to park near her smoke stack.
After trying to give Janie the benefit of the doubt, it was clear this behavior was not going to change. So naturally, I complained to her. After an apology, which included the intention to change this behavior, she abruptly shifted her attitude and banned me as a patient. To switch providers I needed my two children’s records faxed over to the new pediatrician. Legally Janie has 30 days to perform this task, however she herself admits this faxing usually only takes her office 1 day, or up to 1 week. Janie Huff-​Slankard took 41 days to fax my children’s records to our new pediatrician. During this time she refused to see my children AND a new pediatrician needs records in order to see a child. My sweet brand new baby got sick during this time and because of Janie’s CHOICE to not fax our records in a timely fashion, my baby was left with no primary care provider. Janie Huff-​Slankard, Pediatrician at ROSE CITY PEDIATRICS put a personal vendetta over the care of two children. She is vengeful, mean, and beyond unprofessional.
*****In response to Janie’s reply below. *****
Janie is telling some untruths about how our interactions played out. But more importantly, she does not touch on the fact that she and Emily chose to delay faxing two children’s records.
Here is *more* of our experience (sorry for the length)…
My original email to Janie, criticizing her smoking before seeing patients, was strong. But it was also kind. I tell Janie we have been grateful for her service, I also tell her I will be looking for a new pediatrician, though in perfect world I wish she could just fix the problem so we could stay with her. Janie responded whole-​heartedly. She apologizes and says she wants to change the behavior. She says we had been a wonderful addition to her clinic. She thanks me for my brutal honestly and admits it has inspired her.
I quickly responded to Janie thanking her for the sincere response. At this time I apologized if my original email was too heavy handed and for not saying something in person. I admitted I am poor with confrontation in person and lose my words.
These exchanges ended amicably.
So, a month later I sent another email asking if she would still have us as clients. I admitted we wanted to avoid change and we had liked her clinic. At this point Janie got pretty cold. She said my original email was «a bit over the top for her «. Janie NEVER offered me help in finding a new pediatrician as she claims.
I responded again telling her I understood, though I thought it was rude of her to say I was «over the top». My email was sincere, and apparently an inspiration to her. Janie’s coldness was not in line with her original apology. I then told her that I wished her luck quitting smoking and not making other families feel crappy as they pull-​up to find their pediatrician smoking. (This must have been what she was referring to as «ugly» in her reply.)
That was the last of our communication on this matter, THEN I needed my children’s records faxed. This was THE WORST PART of all of this! Janie’s response below does not touch on the fact that she took 41 days to fax over any of my oldest sons records and the complete set of my babies records. I called the office and spoke with Emily (pleaded with her) when my baby had gotten sick during this 41 days. Emily basically told me she would send the faxes when it was convenient for her and she didn’t know what else to tell me. She was undeniably condescending and rude. Our new doctor’s office was finally successful at convincing Rose City Pediatrics to fax both of my children’s complete records on the 41^st day after their original request. It was Janie’s UNPROFESSIONALISM on this matter that elicited the need for public review.
I also have no desire to continue this conversation with Janie, but Janie’s untruths needed to be addressed. This healthcare worker could benefit from learning to take criticism gracefully. Furthermore, my original email was sent to the ONLY email address provide on their website.
**I am happy to share any and all of my email communications between Janie and I with anyone who has any questions of me. So far, in sharing this experience I have learned I am not the only parent who has run into problems with this clinic.

I brought my 4 month old son in yesterday and Dr. Janie was wonderful. My son was born with one kidney so we have seen a lot of different doctors for him and she is by far the best. I really felt like she spent a lot of time getting to know him and was awesome about answering all of my questions. It’s such a relief to finally have a great doctor who really cares.

We just brought our 6 day old daughter to Dr Janie and it was awesome. We had another pediatrician for our son that we felt never listened or respected what our choices were. The minute Dr Janie walked in the room she just has a way about her she was so kind and nurturing to our daughter it made me look at my husband and mouth to him «she is great»!! It’s a colorful office our room had a fire truck exam table, the toys and books she had were up to date and she gives a beanie baby to the patient at the end of the appointment. She has paid attention to all the details that make you feel warm and welcome. Our family is lucky to have her as our children’s doctor. The visit made mine and my husband day. Thank you rose city pediatrics.

The receptionist is kind and very helpful. The environment is clean and so kid friendly. The Dr. Was so down to earth and knowledgeable. Wonderful place to bring your children !

WARNING: DO NOT BRING YOUR CHILDREN HERE. Rose City Pediatrics is the absolute worst medical clinic I have ever been to. There is only ONE single doctor named Janie, (no nurses or anything) who is unprofessional and lacks the required skills to be a doctor. When my children and I first came to the clinic, she was outside smoking a cigarette, covered in tattoos, bright cherry red dyed hair and came off as lazy or tired. When she was doing a check-​up on my baby, she looked in her diaper and diagnosed her by saying, «Your baby has a virus which causes these vaginal WARTS» I got really scared until I looked and saw it was just some blueberry muffin crumbs from breakfast!!! I have had to take my children to the emergency room because they are so hard to get a hold of to make an appointment. When I actually can get a hold of someone to make an appointment, they INSIST on sending a picture of the medical need INSTEAD of seeing my children in person. When my son and daughter needed to be checked for lactose intolerance and allergies, she said that she didn’t want to deal with it so she gave me phone numbers to specialists so they can deal with the needs instead. I am so disturbed by this insult of a medical clinic that I am taking time out of my day to write this review in hope that no other children will have to be treated in the way that mine were at this office.

I took my kids for our first visit to Dr. Janie and LOVED it. The clinic is small, which is a nice change from our last favorite peds office, with 10 doctors nurses and numerous patients at any given time. This office was really cute and fun for the kids. I really liked Emily at the front desk, who helped me get the appointment over the phone and helped me work out insurance OHP stuff too. I have been «in the system» for medical coverage for years (in OR and CA), and this is the best experience I have had with ANY medicaid-​approved office. I didn’t feel like we were being rushed out. I didn’t feel pressured to vaccinate. I felt very comfortable with the more casual setting. My kids all loved Dr. Janie too.

We’ve been taking our son, Alex to Dr. Janie since. .. I guess since a few weeks after he was born. I was initially won over by her journey from being a nurse, through getting her Doctorate as a Nurse Practitioner. It’s truly the best of both worlds. You get the care and attention from the nurse side and the knowledge and trust. It’s like a doctor who cares, has good manner, and probably writes legibly. Even though it means getting shots or otherwise poked and probed and prodded, Alex doesn’t mind going to Dr. Janie’s office. I also love that she lives in the neighborhood (I’ll occasionally see her driving around in her yellow VW Bus), and has a Southern drawl and warm attitude. Five stars all the way.

I just switched from a large pediatric practice to Janie’s small practice. Much more personable and I was able to get my son an appt much faster/​easier than at the larger practice. My husband was impressed with how kid-​friendly her waiting area is… very cozy and welcoming. And Janie has great skills~ she taught some of my classes years ago while I was getting my Pediatric Nurse Practitioner degree!

I LOVE ROSE CITY PEDIATRICS.
Emily in the front office is easy to talk to, knowledgeable, and friendly. She has been very helpful to us many times.
Janie is the best doctor we have had the pleasure to encounter in quite some time. She is extremely available to her patients, she is thorough and has never seemed rushed or too busy to give our family her full attention. She is wonderful with our son and had created trust between them within a few short visits. She is also incredibly knowledgable and intelligent which makes it easy to trust her medical direction.
Quick example: Our 15 month old son developed a very scary-​looking and fast-​spreading rash at 6:00 pm on a Friday night. We called Rose City Pediatrics to speak to whoever was on-​call for advice. Janie called us back extremely quickly and offered to look at a picture of the rash via text. She advised us to go the the Children’s ER just to be safe, although she thought it was probably a viral rash. After waiting for three hours in the ER, the doctor came in, barely looked at the rash and said, «It’s just a virus. Any questions before I go?» What?! That didn’t explain anything! We felt totally blown off and ignored.
A week later the rash worsened and we felt pretty freaked out since it was now all over our son’s body and looked AWFUL. We called Janie again and this time she had us meet her at the office. On her day off. She came in to see us because she could tell we were starting to feel frantic. She did a thorough exam and explained to us in detail how viruses can cause these scary-​looking rashes. She then showed us a picture of the rash in a medical book that looked exactly like our son’s and explained to us what it meant, what to expect, and what to look for in the future to know if we should be concerned or not. She essentially said the same thing the ER doc said (It’s just a virus!) but the WAY she said it, the TIME she took to say it, her COMPASSION, and her AVAILABILITY to us made all the difference in the world.
WE LOVE DR. JANIE.

I took my 6 year old to see Dr. Janie a few days ago b/​c she was on our insurence. I would come to see her even if she wasn’t in network! The office is very small and cute paint on the walls feels very warm and homey. My daughter and I loved her! My daughter said she didn’t want to go! This is by far the best dr visit we’ve ever had! I believe she is the best choice for Portland parents, alternative immunization schdules with no judgment! What a find! They are a small practice which I love:)

I think Janie is great with children and I was so excited to have her as our pediatrician. However, its very difficult to get a live person on the phone to talk with. I’ve left 3 messages to reschedule an appointment and no one has gotten back to me. Its very frustrating and I think the baby was supposed to be seen at for at least a couple of more checkups, but I cant get in contact with anyone. I am thinking about switching care because our other provider was very good about getting back to us and thats important too.

Unfortunately I didn’t have the greatest experience with this clinic. We have been there several times. When we first started going to this clinic I was very impressed with the kid friendly atmosphere and the way Dr. Janie responded to the children. But after the initial visit I noticed a pattern of unanswered calls and emails. It also seems that Emily is very forgetful or unorganized (the secretary) and doesn’t always put the appointments in Janie’s schedule. They also don’t keep up to date on vaccinations or well child visits. I also feel that the Janie is more inclined to prescribe something instead of finding the root of the problem. And if you are unwilling to cover the problem with medication then Janie doesn’t seem very interested anymore. As people I think both Janie and Emily are personable and do well with the children, but as a PCP I am not happy with the care received here.

I feel really comfortable with Dr. Janie. She is patient, kind and very knowledgeable. She can help calm any fears you (or your child) might have and she does not pretend to know everything. If you have an after-​hours emergency you can talk to her directly and not to some anonymous nurse in a large practice that does not know your child and his/​her needs and tendencies. Janie works really closely with her 1 person staff (Emily) who is sweet and also very knowledgeable. From my perspective one of the best things about Dr. Janie is she can take kids on OHP (depends on your plan — make sure you ask). So glad I found the kind of pediatrician I was looking for.

Dr. Janie is the best! She knows pediatrics, is personable and my baby loves her! I feel lucky to have such great care for my baby. She is funny and sweet with my baby and informs me of all of our options before doing anything. She makes recommendations for vaccinations but allows me to make what I feel is the best choice for my baby at the time. One of the most amazing things that Dr. Janie offers is an after hours phone number you can call when you are in a late night, sometimes delirious panic about your baby’s health. She will take you through what you should do and what the options are. I didn’t even know something like this existed. Oh and she knew who I was by what my baby’s name was. She new my baby by name! I love not being a number. Anyways, she saved us a trip to the hospital (because as a new mom, I was panicking and didn’t know what to do when my baby spikes a fever) and she called the next day to check in. Unbelievably compassionate!
2015…it is now years later and I just had my second child and I am still just as content with Dr. Janie as I ever was.

Janie is amazing. Very thorough, attentive, and listens well. I always feel like we have her full attention. She is great with the kids, too. I am so thankful to have found her after we recently moved across country. It is also a plus that she has such extensive nursing background. Highly recommend her!!!
Emily, her office assistant, is wonderful, too!

I brought my 7 ½ year old son in to see Dr. Janie for his annual wellness check. Being a medical assistant that used to work for my kid’s pediatrician I am very spoiled for personalized care and I haven’t found that again until now. Dr. Janie was great with my son, very down to earth and matter-​of-​fact with him and I think he appreciated that almost as much as I did. We try not to be alarmists and don’t want to go in for uneeded tests and whatnot and I get the impression that she feels similarly.
I am getting ready to take my almost 12 year old daughter in now and it will be interesting to see how she is with the pre-​pubescent set. I am sure that she will be great!
SO happy to have found Dr. Janie and Rose City Peds!

Dr. Janie is a the best Doc out there. She is so cool and my kids love her! Her office is so kid-​oriented, I almost feel giant when I’m there! Every kid gets a stuffed animal at every visit and they actually look forward to going to the doctor’s office! I absolutely adore her. A true gem and I’m so glad she’s there! I feel no pressure to make choices I’m not comfortable with and feel no judgement of my parenting style whatsoever. Thank Janie. You rock!