Finding the Right Family Doctor: Things You Need to Consider
According to statistics, Americans make roughly 1.1 billion medical visits each year and almost half of these are spent visiting their GPs. These family doctors are considered to be in the frontline of medical service provision for they normally deal with common ailments such as treating chronic diseases like high blood pressure, allergies, and asthma; treating minor injuries; prescribing medication for migraine, coughs, and colds, and even providing medical advice regarding nutrition and dieting. Thus, choosing the right family doctor or GP is a crucial element in ensuring that your family receives the right medical attention, information, and service.
One of the problems involved in looking for the right family doctor is knowing where to begin the search. If you are covered by an insurance policy, the best places to start the task of choosing the right doctor is to consult the network provided by your health insurance. Companies usually provide a network of recommended clinics and doctors. If you do not have insurance, you can look at the list of family doctors provided by the local chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians. The American Medical Association’s Web site < http://www.ama-assn.org/> also has a DoctorFinder tool to help you locate doctors whose practice is what you are looking for and are located in an area near you. Local hospitals could also provide referrals concerning the physicians whom they allow to practice in their institutions. Aside from searching the Internet, you can also ask your friends, colleagues, relatives, and generally anyone whose opinion you respect and trust.
Another important consideration is to check and see if the doctor is capable of providing the service that you require in a manner that is most convenient for you. In order to come up with a short list of possible candidates, you can limit the options depending on your answers to some key questions or issues. Such questions include the following: Can you book appointments at a reasonable amount of time? Is the doctor available for emergencies, home visits, and on weekends? Will the doctor accept your insurance coverage or at least receive fees through credit cards? Will the doctor (and his or her staff) be willing to dispense advice over the phone or will they answer your e-mails regarding health-related questions? When you answer yes to these questions, then you will know that you have found the right family doctor for you and your family.
Finally, apart from financial and other practical considerations, it is also important that you feel you can establish rapport and a trusting relationship with your doctor. In the following years, he or she will be privy to your family’s medical conditions and have access to information you would want to be kept as confidential info. Thus, it is important that your GP will be a trustworthy candidate. In addition, your physician must be someone who is adept at communication and can patiently listen and attend to your concerns. He or she must also be able to talk to you in a way that is comfortable and fully comprehensible. Apart from the doctor’s ability to provide health care to you and your family, he or she must also be able to establish compatibility and rapport.
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December 27 2009 06:25 pm | Uncategorized