The first thing you must decide is the type of doctor you are looking for in a primary care physician (PCP). They generally fall under three categories; general practitioners, family practitioners, and internists.
General Practitioners are family practice doctors who have received their training before Family Practice became a certifiable specialty with specific training requirements. They are also doctors who may include osteopaths and are more likely to not have board certification depending on state laws and requirements.
Family Practitioners are certified or are board eligible in the specialty of Family Practice and have completed specific training in Family Medicine. They treat patients of all ages from infants to geriatric adults. They are able to treat widespread illnesses and conditions, including those sometimes treated by specialists.
Internist are certified or board eligible and have completed specific training in the specialty of Internal Medicine. They usually only treat adults and although they treat a wide variety of medical conditions, they usually don't treat more serious conditions that require specialized care.
Please note that I have purposely left out Pediatricians for all of you adults with children and plan on covering that topic later.
Now that you have a basic understanding of the types of doctors to choose from the next thing to do is to narrow the list down to fit your specific needs.
First you have to look at your general state of health and determine which type of doctor best fits your needs. For instance if you had a wide array of medical problems you may be better served by a Family Practitioner rather than an internist who may likely refer you to different Specialists to treat your various disease states, thus increasing your out of pocket expenses (copays, deductibles, etc.).
The question then arises about healthcare insurance do you have an HMO or PPO, do you have major medical or are you covered by medicare or medicaid or even a state funded program and unfortunately there are those of us who have to pay out of pocket. These monetary factors have a definite impact on the medical care you are able to access. Now it is time to look at a list of physicians that are available to you under your insurance carriers. Narrow the list down by talking to friends and relatives in the area. However, my advice is look for a local independent pharmacy in your area and go in and ask the the pharmacist if he or she could spend a few minutes with you that you are looking for a new pharmacy and a new doctor. Ask him or her for their recommendation. Remember, these pharmacist deal with these doctors every day and know a lot of them personally as well as how their patients feel about them. I owned and operated my own pharmacy for seventeen years and each week I would stop into a different doctors office before work with a box of donuts and free samples trial size hand lotions, etc. for the staff. Granted I only got into see the doctor about three out of each five visits, but I got a feel for how the office was run and operated. Then as the years went on I was able to develop a relationship with these doctors and felt very comfortable about which doctors I recommended to patients when asked. Let me stress, however, ask an independent pharmacist this question, not a chain store pharmacist who has no stock in getting to know the doctors in their area. The other thing an independent pharmacist gets to know is each and everyone of his patients by name their medical histories and the relationships they have with their doctors both likes and dislikes. An independent pharmacist must get to know all his patients personally. They are the people who keep him in business. Believe me when I say they take an interest their patients, their patients' families and of course their patients' doctors. Otherwise, their doors don't stay open very long competing with the big chain drug stores. These independent pharmacist hold a wealth of knowledge and are willing to share that knowledge with you as long as it does not violate any of the HIPPA regulations.
You have now narrowed your list of potential primary care physicians. The next thing is to determine if they are still taking new patients if so ask the following questions to the receptionist over the phone when contacting them about becoming a new patient.
1. Does the doctor see patients in more than one office? (Are all the offices convenient to either your home or office.)
2. If you need to be seen quickly and your doctor is practicing at another office that day does he have a partner or partners that can see you in the office that is most convenient for you that day.
3. Are you going to actually see your doctor or are you going to spend most of your appointments visiting with a nursing practitioner or physicians assistant.
4. Does your doctor take emergency calls after hours or have someone "on call" to take your calls in case of an emergency. Try calling the office after hours. If you do get a recording that states "If this is a true medical emergency please hang up and call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room". Scratch that doctor off your list.
Now the final step involves making a visit to the doctor's office you have chosen;
1. Sit down in the waiting room for about 15 to 30 minutes and observe how long patients are waiting to be seen and do they look distraught or frustrated when exiting the office?
2. Watch the staff do they seem happy, are they attentive and organized and are the phones answered in a reasonable amount of time?
3. Next approach the receptionist tell her you looking for a new doctor and ask the following questions. How far in advance do I usually need to schedule an appointment and would the doctor be able to squeeze me in the same day if I had an emergency? What days and times does the doctor see patients? Who provides care in the doctor is absent? What hospital does the doctor admit patients to? And Lastly, can I set up an introductory visit with the doctor?
If all has gone according to plan you have found your new doctor, but if you feel at all uncomfortable or you don't communicate well during your introductory visit with your new PCP then start looking for a new one. Most insurance providers allow you to switch PCP in the 1st year more than once until you feel comfortable with the choice you have made.
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