Meet Your Pediatrician: Andi Singer

Tell us about your practice and who you serve- At The Pediatric Collective, we believe in caring for the whole child by supporting the entire family. As a board-certified family nurse practitioner specializing in pediatrics with 12 years of clinical expertise and 9 years of experience as a mama, I serve children from birth to age 18. We specialize in empowering caregivers with practical, evidence-based tools while creating an inclusive clinic culture that fosters a sense of belonging. We are a direct primary care practice (DPC), where families pay a membership fee, which allows us to remove any hidden fees and have no copays. We embrace a Direct Primary Care (DPC) model to provide personalized and accessible healthcare for your child. Here's how this approach works and benefits you: DPC is a healthcare model where you pay a flat monthly fee directly to our practice, eliminating the need for insurance billing. This straightforward arrangement fosters a direct relationship between you and our team by giving you longer, unhurried visits, better access to the clinician, and a predictable cost. Because there are fewer administrative tasks (IE, red tape from the insurance companies), I get to have more time with the patient during each appointment, which allows for better discussions about your child's health. Also, because of this model, you will have enhanced access to me compared to traditional practice, where you call a call center and wait many days for a response. Here, you can speak to the clinician the same or the next day rather than delay a visit. Lastly, with the predictable cost of our flat monthly fee, you will notice there is financial transparency and no surprise bills ever. Overall, you will receive a strong patient-provider relationship, as the visits are more frequent and unhurried, which leads to better communication and trust. Because we limit our patient panel, we offer more extended visits, same or next day appointments, and direct messaging with the provider. I chose this model because I've lived the pressure of rushed visits and production-based care--and I know families deserve something better. This model allows me to give the kind of care I want for my children.

• How did you end up in your industry? I started my career in the fast-paced world of critical care, but everything changed when I became a mom. Motherhood gave me a whole new lens--it made me passionate about the early years and deeply empathetic to the emotional load of raising children. While in NP school, I had the opportunity to train under Dr Mendoza, an incredible pediatric mentor who gave me the most supportive and inspiring introduction to the field. That experience and my motherhood journey made it clear that pediatrics was where I was meant to be. It's a privilege I don't take lightly.

• What is it like being a mom and practice owner? You all may understand this sentiment-- beautiful, exhausting, fulfilling, and sometimes overwhelming. There's this constant tension between building something meaningful for other families while also trying to be fully present for my own. Shonda Rhimes said it best: "Being a mother and a working woman, always feeling like you're failing at one or the other. You never feel like you're getting it right." There are days I feel that in my bones. But what keeps me grounded is the belief that I am showing my kids what it looks like to lead, care deeply, and build something that matters.

• What was the best/most challenging aspect of pregnancy? Oof--it’s a mix of beauty and challenge. I've had many different experiences, ranging from a home water birth to an unmedicated hospital birth to a fully medicated hospital birth. Each one brought its own distinct set of joys and struggles. One of the most challenging aspects has always been my changing body. With each pregnancy, it became harder to feel comfortable. But the best part was, no doubt, feeling those little kicks and flutters. There's something magical about the connection you think knowing another life is growing inside you.

• (Bonus) What is one service/item you would put on your registry now? Hands down, I would request a service with a certified infant and toddler sleep consultant to use once developmentally appropriate. Sleep truly is the best gift—both for baby and parents. After experiencing the challenges of sleepless nights for almost a year, I learned that having expert guidance to help establish healthy sleep habits early can make all the difference for your well-being.