Category: Health News
Created: 9/19/2008 2:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 9/19/2008
Finding the Right Physician For You
Before you meet with the physician, you should compile a list of questions. They may be something like:
(1) How long has he been in practice?
(2) Is he Board certified?
(3) What is his stance on patients being involved in their own care?
(4) Is he open to patients asking questions about their own case, and will he answer openly and honestly?
(5) What are his office policies on after-hour calls?
(6) How long does he allow for patient appointments?
(7) When you need to be seen, what is the normal time frame it takes to get an appointment?
(8) What are his payment policies? Does his office accept your insurance?
A doctor should be like an old friend. Someone we feel comfortable with knowing our most personal secrets; such as, how much alcohol we really consume. How many cigarettes do we generally smoke a day? And are we really trying to shed those pounds he's been insistent on us dropping? We need to feel free to be honest, even honest about how regularly we really take that medication he prescribed for us. But the truth is, a lot of us don't feel comfortable with our physicians. And we don't know how to communicate how we feel when it comes to our concerns about our healthcare. For some, it's a lack of trust. For others, a lack of respect. And still others, their personalities simply don't mesh.
My name is Maria Richmond. I grew up with a family physician for a father and a nurse for a mother. I attended nursing school and have worked in many physicians' offices from Urology to my father's family practice. I have also been a patient, too many times to count, with medical problems from my feet to brain surgery, so have encountered countless numbers of physicians, all of them not being the best doctor for me. I have lots of experience in the world of medicine both as an employee, and as a patient.
It is not always easy finding a doctor that you feel comfortable with, but it is possible. We put time and effort into finding the right hair dresser and even the perfect mechanic that we trust with our automobile, but when it comes to our bodies, we don't always take the time to interview, or do our homework when it comes to finding the right guy to take care of our bodies. Instead, we pick a name out of the phone book and trust that he is not only knowledgeable in the particular field of medicine we are seeking, but that he has our best interest at heart.
There comes a time in each of our lives when we all need a doctor, whether it is for an inconsequential illness, such as a head cold, or for a more serious reason that may be life threatening. Whatever the reason, we all need to have a doctor whom we not only have a good rapport with, but one we trust with our lives.
When our health is compromised, we want someone who will give us the utmost care, attention, and consideration. We want someone to have our best interest at heart. And we want our concerns to be validated. If you don't get a good first impression, you might want to keep looking; interview more physicians. Not every doctor is for every person. Just like buying a new car, or even a new pair of shoes, we shop around. What might be a good fit for one person, may not be a good fit for you. If you do your research and plan ahead, the next time you need a doctor, you may find that the healing process is much easier to handle if you already have an idea of who will be treating you.
It can be frustrating trying to get your feelings across to your physician. Some people feel uncomfortable or out of place speaking their mind to someone with a plaque hanging on the wall; after all, he's the doctor and you're just the patient. And so, they keep showing up to their appointments and walking out of the office feeling more frustrated than their last visit.
There are some tips to finding the right doctor for you, and to start, like with trying to land a wanted job, it requires an interview process. An interview with a physician should be done prior to needing his services. You should schedule an appointment for a time when you are not ill, and let the scheduler know that you are seeking a new physician and would like to come in and just talk with him and ask some questions. A lot of times, these types of appointments are scheduled at the end of the physician's day, in their last time slot. If the scheduler tells you that the doctor does not see possible patients for interviews, that might warrant a red flag that you should pay attention to. Most doctors will meet with possible patients to answer any questions they might have, prior to needing their services, and if they don't, you may want to keep looking.
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