I wish I could choose doctors who look like Hugh Laurie. Mmm.

I call my father, and rarely have to go to a doctor.

Typically, it's close to work and in my insurer's plan.

I love it when I go to a new doctor, and they ask with all eager anticipation, "So, how did you choose me?" expecting me to say something like, "Oh, my friend says you are wonderful...". When I tell them how I picked them, they look very sad.

i just pick the closest one that my insurance plan covers. i've been extremely lucky and have had excellent physicians. dentists too!

Insurance isn't expensive enough, but now CNN is telling people to make bogus appointments, in which the insurance company will be charged the full $150 or whatever?

There must be a better way.

I recently chose a new doctor, and I think I had a good process.

1. Find local doctors covered by my insurance
2. Go to Library and search journal publications of doctors
3. Select doctor who publishes the most or in highest rated journals.
4. Consider in publications the subject. If you have a lot of knee problems, find someone who publishes on this topic.

If you are assertive then there is not much of a worry about being rushed through an appointment. Come prepared with questions and I doubt the doctor will leave without answering them. The better you understand your own conditions the better your doctor visits will be.

@UpsetPanda:

That was what I was thinking. I wouldn't mind a doctor who looked like that one bit.

But I must say I choose a doctor based on my health coverage and proximity to my home.

However, I did add a third piece of criteria to the choosing of my most recent doctor: Name. My new doctor is called Dr. Kavorkian. Slightly differently spelling than the famous Dr. Jack Kervorkian, but still sounds pretty hilarious.

That advice is so impractical.

A better way is to ask people you know if they would recommend their doctors. If that doesn't work, I have to admit that my next step is to just pick an area close to my home or work, make sure the doc is in my insurance network, and see whomever is first available.

Recommendations, recommendations, recommendations. But since I'd rather not have the same doctor as a friend or relative (something about being too close for comfort), I look for "best-of" ratings in local rags. Here in NY, New York Magazine's annual "Best-of" issue is a fantastic place to find virtually anything, and they also have an issue rating all types of doctors.

With copays, coinsurance and deductibles this could get really expensive. Even worse if your shopping for a specialist.

I have been leaning more toward female doctors after having two male doctors completely blow off complaints I had that later ended up being major problems. I do have a couple of male specialists that I still use but they listen and take what you tell them seriously and are good at what they do.

So I guess it boils down to a doctor that listens and knows what the heck they are doing.

Graduation date, University attended, Last name, and if English is their primary language.

i wait until i'm sick, and then i call until i find one that will see me

I usually go to "RateMD.com"
You choose what state you're searching for and it brings up a list.
You can sort stuff by specialty or by last name.
There's comments by patients as to what their experiences were like.

I found my Physical therapist and endocrinologist this way. Heck I found my Endocrinologist had saturday office hours and also that if you make an appt, you'll probably wait because she takes lots of time with each patient... A decent trade for good medical advice :)

And if you go see a Dr and you like him and he's not on the list, you can add him. and give comments as you like. my original endocrinologist was so AWFUL but highly recommended by other doctors. He wasn't on Rate MD so I put him on there with a scathing review. Within a month lots of other folks wrote their experiences there too.

I don't. I figure that if I'm eventually in a situation where I need a doctor, the ambulance will take me to the nearest hospital.

pretty much whoever the fuck my insurance company allows me to go to. that's why i pay them you know. so they can tell me what to do.

that and funny names! i enjoy funny dr names!

I have the pleasure of working at a large university hospital so I hear a lot about the doctors and their reputations. Plus, the state of Missouri's Department of Professional Registration lists any reprimands that a Missouri provider has against their license on their website. So I ask around, check out the Dept of PR website then Google!

@arch05: Um, do you mean you prefer them if English is not their primary language? I've had some top-notch foreign-born doctors, and some red-blooded American sons that I would never, ever consider visiting again...

I just chose a doctor for my son a couple of weeks ago, so this is pretty timely.

My method was first to find a list on my insurance company's website of in-network doctors. Then out of that list I Googled several that were close-by.

My basic criteria was for them to have been practicing for about 15 years so that they were experienced but also up on all the latest "stuff."

My son has autistic-like behaviors and possibly Fragile-X Syndrome (for which there is a blood test - we're awaiting the results), and I really needed someone who could talk to me about all of that.

Then when I narrowed it down, I Googled further on the doctor I had pretty much chosen and combined that search with local message boards and found local Moms saying how great she was.

Sadly, once she finally saw my son, she tried to upsell me every specialist in the book. Before even knowing whether he has Fragile-X Syndrome, she wanted me to make an appointment at a University with a team of dysmorphologists. Woah, let's find out if he has it or not first.

Then when she diagnosed him with ADHD, she wanted to send him right to a child psychologist.

Then, when ordering the test for Fragile-X, she ordered him an entire chromosomal panel which would have tested for every chromosomal dysfuntion in the book - not just Fragile-X.

I have to pay a significant portion of medical fees, even though I have insurance, and these knee-jerk, premature, over-the-top recommendations would have cost me thousands of dollars.

So unfortunately my research did not yield me with what I consider to be favorable results. In fact, I was appalled. She did nothing for my son beyond ordering the (wrong) blood test (which I did correct), and referring him to others.

Even though it didn't work out, I think there were some good methods to my madness. But I think an important piece of the puzzle is that doctors are individual human beings, and you just have to 1) watch them like hawks and 2) possibly try more than one before you find the one that's right for you.

I had such terrible luck finding a good/adequate doctor that when the time came to change insurance, I chose Kaiser (because I figured I didn't have anything to lose). However, when I had to pick a doctor there, I was able to review resumes and personal statements and even look at their pictures on the web. I have a great doctor now and it's easy to change if I ever decide to. We had Kaiser when I was a kid and it was terrible; it's very different now.

I ask friends in the medical field, or friends of friends in the medical field (more likely) to ask around, get a list of suitable doctors, and then find out which is in my insurance.

If you can't trust friends of friends, who can you trust?

@smitty1123: Same here. I haven't seen a doctor since my paediatrician (don't laugh, he'd continue seeing any of his patients for as long as you were comfortable going there) retired 12-13 years ago.

I should probably find a new doctor & get a physical since I just turned 30 & all.

OT, I just want to point out that the post picture is one of the most hilarious ones I've seen in a while, cause I love House and I love those ridiculous facial expressions that make great screencaps.

Unfortunately, I had to go through a few bad doctors before finding a good one. Our first doctor (my wife and I) only accepted checks, and had very elderly patients. He was boring and didnt seem to care much. And gave us pills for everything.

Our second doctor only accepted CASH!!!! His office was in a bad part of town, and it took 1-2 hours to see him (because of all the walk-ins, and because he was the only doctor there.) and he sent us to the ER for everything! (because he didnt have the equipment he needed sometimes) that got a little expensive.

Then someone gave me some interesting advice. Ask if they take American Express. It sounds silly, but its true, and it worked. I called a list of like 20 doctors, and only like 9 took AMEX. I then asked every single one if they had ever been sued for malpractice, asked them about their rudest patient, and a couple more interview like questions. (over the phone by the way.) I then found a perfect doctor. She is part of a practice that has 3 doctors, and OB GYN, a Pediatric doctor, and a pharmasy on site.

Ask the AMEX question people, usually the businesses that take AMEX are doing pretty well.

@Murph1908: AND you'll probably have to pay a co-pay for, too!

This is why I dont listen to Clinton News Network.

Woah, I didn't mean to post a book for the whole world - I thought comments on this particular thread were being pre-moderated. My apologies!

I'm lucky. I have the best method you could possibly have. One of my best friends is a pediatrician. He's my twin boys' doctor and I ask him anytime I need one for myself. He recommended a great primary, and just ask him when I need a specialist.

Essentially he's the best possible reference... Both a trusted friend AND a doctor.

1) Insurance + distance from work
2) Recommendations from family
3) Recommendations online

[ratemds.com]

CNN has had some pretty crappy advice lately. There was an article about whether you were an obnoxious patient:

Another piece of advice: Be careful how you bring up Internet information. Sounding like you know more than the doctor does could result in alienating your doctor and getting less than optimal care.

Then there was the article about how flirting can be good for the work place:

In fact, flirting might even have some indirect benefits on the job, says Reeder, citing research conducted at the University of South Alabama in 2003 showing that people who don't flirt very much have lower energy levels and rate themselves as less attractive than people who flirt a lot.

I choose a doctor that has a last name I can pronounce. I'm not "hating" on all the foreign doctors with the crazy last names that are all vowels and whatever. I just want to be able to say the last name without having my brain explode.
That, and I have a hard time hearing as it is. I need someone that can speak clear english to me. I don't want to have to strain in order to understand important info my doc is telling me.

@privatejoker75: Amen...I haven't been to the doctor in years; I would rather look to natural remedies than go to the doctor; unless of course I need a hospital from overdosing or being poisoned from natural remedies and then I go wherever the ambulance takes me.

Seriously, I go to the health food store (no, not GNC) when I'm sick, not the doctor.

With a $40 co-pay shopping around for a Dr. Isnt exactly a great idea for me...

I found my current doctor practically by blind luck. I looked for female doctors on my insurance's website and picked one that was close (at the time) and had a "family practice" including OB/GYN. She's great, but she operates in the ghetto, and her practice seems to be geared towards people who don't work during the day (I've never gotten an early morning appointment, and I've never waited less than 45 minutes.)

So, now I'm looking for a new doctor (or doctor(s), if I need a separate OB/GYN). I've tried asking around, and I haven't gotten any good recommendations for a primary care doctor. Nobody I know seems very happy with their doctor.

I chose my doctor based on proximity to my apt. and the one who had the least foreign sounding name. Which obviously goes against my screen name.

@arch05: My parents prefer doctors whose language is not their first language...they're foreign born, find it easier to communicate even though they're fluent in English.

@Beerad: Nope, I prefer those educated in the US and whose first language is English. There are world-class medical institutions outside the US that produce world-class doctors. I know that. However, my area does not attact them. I also prefer being able to understand what my doctor says, as opposed to feeling like I'm on a call with Dell.

@UpsetPanda: Excellent. I get what you meant.

"Shopping around" for a doctor in the manner that CNN suggests is costly to both the consumer and the health insurance companies. Step 1 would be finding a primary care provider who falls within your health insurance provider's network. Step 2 would be to get as many references as possible from neighbors/coworkers/google. Step 3 would be to make an appointment AS NEEDED. Lastly, when you're at your appointment, test the doctor by asking him to explain what he's doing and why. If you have a specific question about any symptoms or medications ask him to explain/defend his reasoning or thought process. A good doctor will try his best to explain each and every detail in a manner that you will understand. "Well I'm sure you don't have X because you don't exhibit symptoms A or B. I believe your symptoms fall into the categories of Y or Z." Or, when explaining medication "I don't believe X is the appropriate medication because A and B. I believe a more appropriate treatment plan would be Y and/or Z."

Any doctor who TELLS you to do something or makes a prescription without explaining his reasoning is not worth the money you, or your insurance, will end up paying him. Patients have the right to make informed decisions and to be educated about their care so a good doctor will do his best to give you the scoop, to the best of his abilities. A very big problem with primary care these days is that to be profitable a large number of doctors run their practice like a factory line. They'll rush into the room, do a few quick tests (whatever the nurse hasn't already done), write a prescription, direct you to the cash register and leave. Those are the doctors you want to avoid because they'll be much more likely to miss something that could potentially be a big problem or flat out ignore your complaints. Those types of doctors deserve every malpractice suit they get.

@arch05: all of your criteria + board certification. My gyn (who I love and I've had for years) said that it's "not a bad way to pick a Doctor."

@privatejoker75: Me too, and I vowed never to set foot in a doctors office again since I got Scarlet Fever from the last place I was in.

I got the nastiest case of Pink Eye I have EVER gotten and called 3 local offices (Wednesday). The EARLIEST appts everyone had were for the following Tuesday. Screw you all. Urgent Care it is.

I just picked a doctor two weeks ago. The primary criteria were school of education, certification, gender and culture.

I do my own surgery and save a fortune

my option was to go with the ONLY one in my area who was both included in my self-pay, very pricey insurance plan and accepting new patients. and i don't have much confidence in her (though the few, covered specialists to whom i have been referred seem ok).

When I chose a doctor for myself, many years ago, I first picked a hospital with good L&D policies. I then called the female doctors with privilages there and went with the one that could see me that week. She was new, but in a practice with a lot of older doctors, so she was up on all the latest, but had the benefit of experience if she ran across something unusual to her.

To find a doc for my daughter before she was born, I asked my midwive (we now do things a little differently) if any other clients had recomended a good ped. I called two that came well recomended and asked for interviews with them.

I asked their philosophy on treatment and how strongly they felt about certain issues that were important to me (vaccines, circumsion, antibiotics, etc.) I also asked who they felt should make final decisions about the health of my child. One was way way out there and she charged me for the consult, said she'd given me pregnancy advise. We went with the more mainstream man, but switched after he was adament about certain vaccines.

Now I take her to a super busy practice near me. The single doc doesn't care that I don't vaccinate, and I just take my child if she's sick. (All of once in her 16 months of life) Not ideal, but it works.

Going to a doctor shouldn't be too different than going to Worst Buy, or Circuit Sh*tty.

Do your research:
* getting antibiotics for a cold won't do anything
* the rash on your hand could just be a rash, and not the start of pancreatic cancer
* doctors will push pills at you; demand that they give you alternatives (not voodoo, but real stuff)

Do your research on any drugs they prescribe and always request a generic equivalent. If there is not generic equivalent, ask if you can take a different medication that does.

I'm a doctor, and I think the best way to find adoc is a referral from frinds or family or from your family doctor who you trust.

Shocking to believe, but many of those Best docs things are bogus and in many cases the placement may be dictated by $$ paid to the magazines.

@laserjobs:

I knew a guy who had removed his own braces, with a pair of pliers. His teeth were perfect.

He used to stitch us up after rugby and hockey games with dental floss. The scar on my chin from his stitches in 1999 is far less prevalent than the scar on my forehead from stitches done by a plastic surgeon in 1985.

Last I heard, he was a nurse in Boston. Something to be said for medical DIY, eh?

I ask around first, gather references, then lookup their licenses online and see if they're been penalized for any misbehavior.

I notice that no one has mentioned the office staff. I actually had a very good dr who had the rudest front office staff in the world. That's how I pick a dr. Just call the office. If someone picks up and asks you to hold, it's over. If they are rude on the phone, it's over. If you have a question, and they don't attempt to find an answer, it's over.
And the funny thing is (at least where I live), is that there are a million more dr's a block away.
I also find english speaking women the best.

@akalish:

I did that, but every doctor on that list had like a 6 month wait. It's really hard finding a doctor in new city.