NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Spring Hill pediatrician says she has some sympathy as the Tennessee Department of Children's Services tries to sort through claims about children's welfare.

Dr. Shontae Buffington serves as the fellow-at-large representing Middle Tennessee for the Tennessee chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

But Buffington also told The Tennessean ( http://tnne.ws/10PY0YX ) she is irritated that DCS caseworkers without apparent medical expertise sometimes challenged her medical opinions. Buffington said it isn't unusual for a pediatrician to see two or three cases that could be medical maltreatment in a year's time.

The newspaper cited a case in which the department said medical professionals' belief that an East Tennessee infant with heart problems wasn't being properly cared for were unfounded. Six days later, the baby died.

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Information from: The Tennessean, http://www.tennessean.com