.About Dr Pieter J. de Waal
(M.B., Ch.B.; M.Med (Paediatrics); Dip. Allergy; Certificate in Allergy; National Certificate in Asthma Care)
Doctor Pieter de Waal is a Paediatrician and Allergist and the only qualified pediatric asthma and allergy specialist in the Western Cape. He finished his pediatric specialization in 2008 at the University of the Free State and worked as a Pediatrician in private practice since then. He is passionate about teaching his field of expertise to pre- and post-graduate students, and in 2012, joined the University of the Free State as an Allergy Consultant and Senior Lecturer. He has a special interest in pediatric asthma and in 2017, obtained a National Certificate in Asthma Care, from the South African National Asthma Education Program.
In 2018, Dr de Waal furthered his studies in Allergy, obtaining his Diploma in Allergy, from the College of Medicine of South Africa (cum laude). In 2019, he qualified as a subspecialist in Allergology, from the University of Cape Town at Red Cross Children’s Hospital. Dr. De Waal currently resides in Mediclinic Panorama to not only treat children with general medical problems but also to provide and expand the much-needed allergy service.
His passion: to increase the quality of service provided to patients with allergy and asthma and to improve allergy training and awareness among healthcare professionals and the public in central South Africa. Dr. de Waal has presented at various academic congresses and has been the co-author of various academic articles in allergy journals. He is currently in the process of obtaining his Master of Philosophy in Allergology, at the University of Cape Town, studying the microbiome of fresh and fermented cow’s milk and its role in protecting against allergy.
Conditions of specific interest to him are:
- General paediatric diseases and routine healthcare visits
- Pediatric Asthma
- Allergies of the nose and the eyes
- Atopic Dermatitis and other allergic skin conditions
- Food allergy and intolerances
- Penicillin and other suspected drug reactions
- Bee sting and other insect reactions.
PEDIATRICIAN
Did you know?
Did you know that your child has a 60 percent chance to have a second febrile convulsion following the first one and that it might happen within one year? Did you know that if you on stable antiretroviral treatment, you cannot infect your newborn with HIV through breastfeeding?
Do you know when a high temperature in your child is really a significant “fever” and when to call a doctor? How many teeth are your child supposes to have at nine months of age and how many words is he supposed to talk at the age of one year? When does my child have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD/ADHD)?
Some of the specialized services provided will be:
Some of the specialized services provided by him will be
- General pediatric and specialized pediatric allergy consultations
- Skin prick testing to identify aeroallergen and food allergies
- Lung function testing
- Oral food challenges to identify or exclude common and severe food allergy
- Specialized testing for penicillin and other drug allergies
- Immunotherapy
DAILY QUESTIONS
These are just some of the questions that hundreds of concerned parents (especially first-time moms and dads) are struggling to find answers to on a daily basis. Friends and family, specially your own mom and dad, all seems to have the answers: “Relax, we’ve already been through raising children and you all turned out just fine…”; but you still have your own concerns and unanswered questions. Then there are books and magazines, TV programmes and the internet: all giving us information (sometimes too much information, sometimes too little). Sometimes this information is just too technical and full of medical terms, making it impossible for the average parent to apply practically to their own children.
We have probably all heard a dismal parent say: “if only I knew where my little boy’s got pain”. That is why raising children and being a paediatrician is often difficult. We almost have to be like a “Sherlock Holmes” by putting the missing pieces together to make diagnoses.
So, we are here to help you fill in those missing pieces and help you to understand your little one better. We plan to give you practical, current and easy to interpret information on topics, questions and child raising issues. We will attempt to give you issues of child health that almost every paediatrician and general practitioner/healthcare worker deals with on a daily basis.
Remember we are here to guide you and provide information regarding your little one, BUT we don’t want you to make a diagnoses home—that’s just too dangerous!
As with any speciality in the medical field: A good paediatrician always starts his/her assessment of any child with a thorough clinical history and decent medical examination.
So always remember the last step after logging out of this webpage: Make an appointment with your doctor/paediatrician.
Enjoy the journey of raising your valuable gift from God. We are here to share and provide information you will need during this journey. Therefore, make use of us, that’s why we are here for.