Choosing a physician

[littlesista06]

What are your criteria in choosing a doctor?
We have to find new family physcians and a peditrician. Just wondering what ya'll look for....

[AnnW]

Someone who graduated from medical school..preferrably not in Mexico, Granada or Guatemala. On my insurance plan and then referred by friends.

[RCT]

when we moved here, we looked in our insurance provider booklet...then asked around....I really like our Ped... dh and I have a good General Practicioner, nothing wonderful...but he is good......I think its hit or miss....we didn't like that first dentist we had...but now we are totally comfortable, I got his name off of our provider booklet...very useful...if you have one....

[littlesista06]

There are a zillion on our plan!! arrgh
I look at the med. school - know which ones around here are the best, and go by friend's recommendations. There is only 1 ped. office in town and "everyone" goes to it .... not me. Heard too many bad stories about it, and you don't get to see "your" doctor. I like the fact dd has been seeing the same dr. since the day she was born.

[AnnW]

Why are you having to switch?
Ask your current docs for a recommendation.

[MK]

Do you have to have multiple doctors? Why don't you just go with a nice family doctor-- takes care of all of you, and gets to know you all as individuals AND as a family. For instance, we have a family doctor (he does everything from ear infections and wart removal to delivering babies!). We met him when my dh was sick, and he saw dh get well. Then when I went in complaining of fagtigue, he already knew quite well what I had just been through the previous year, and was able to take all that into account. On that same note, he was also very aware of the effects that kind of stress might have on the kids, and our family in general.

In addition, our family doctor has a D.O. -- doctor of osteopathy, not just M.D. They practice traditional medicine, and prescribe medication as needed, but their training includes the philosophy of treating the person as a whole-- mind, body, and spirit, not just "parts."

[littlesista06]

Originally posted by AnnW
Why are you having to switch?
Ask your current docs for a recommendation.

With dh's company switch, our current docs don't accept the health care provider we'll be using. I ran around today getting all perscriptions we had, filled, b/c the rx cost will be going up w/the new plan we'll be on. lol

I plan to ask for recommendations.

MK - I like the idea of a doctor who just does kids. I figure the more 'specialized' they are in their field, the more they know about that specific area. (make sense?)
I do the same thing w/my car... strange analogy, I know.
I take it to the dealership b/c that's all they work on, is THAT particular brand/make of auto, instead of a joe schmo mechanic that works on a little bit of everything....
Hope that made as much sense as it did to me. lol

[littlesista06]

Oh yay!! After a more extensive internet search, our docs are in our new hc plan! Yay!! One less thing I have to do now. whew

[KarlaB]

Great news!!

We got ours when we were first married and dh had a migraine and ended up needing to be seen. Asked a friend, went to that dr and have had him ever since. We all go to him. What I liked about having him when I was pregnant was that I was guaranteed him for the delivery compared to the OB's here where you just get whoever happens to be on call.

[kat]

Dh doesn't care much who he sees. I see a GP. She's been my doctor for years now. My mom & sister used her. After I tried her, I liked the way she spent time listening to me and not rushing to get me out of the office. She has a private practice, is on our insurance, and has an awesome nurse worth her weight in gold.

Ds sees her too for routine health care. He does have a ped. in another town as well.

[MK]

Originally posted by littlesista06



MK - I like the idea of a doctor who just does kids. I figure the more 'specialized' they are in their field, the more they know about that specific area. (make sense?)
I do the same thing w/my car... strange analogy, I know.
I take it to the dealership b/c that's all they work on, is THAT particular brand/make of auto, instead of a joe schmo mechanic that works on a little bit of everything....
Hope that made as much sense as it did to me. lol

Sure, I understand. Whatever works best for you-- different strokes for different folks, right?

Anyway, I'm glad to hear you don't have to switch afterall-- it's especially nice to be able to find a doctor you really like and stick with that doctor for a long, long time. We sure love the one we have. He's very caring and compassionate, and has a great sense of humor-- very important qualities in a doctor. I hope he never moves away!

[MaryL]

One of the reasons that I chose our pediatrician was that she was recommended by our old pedi (who moved to a different location...too far for us to "move with her"). I also like our clinic because it has extended hours with a pediatician...or at the very least a GP available for "walk in" visits. (These are not charged extra...and are covered by insurance.) I think we've used the "walk in" more times than we've actually seen either of our pediatricians . Usually, I don't mind...because I know they will communicate our visit with our "regular" doctor. If it's a chronic problem (re-curring ear infection...asthma follow-up...etc) I always make sure I get an appointment with our doctor.