Selecting a Good Primary Care Physician
Needs
Make a list of your needs. You should decide if you need a doctor close to home or work. If you need to make doctor appointments after work or on weekends, you need to select a good primary care physician that has extended hours or weekend hours. If you have some health conditions that require a specialist, you may want to select a doctor that specializes in certain areas of medicine.
Recommendations
Family and friends can give you names of doctors that they use. Ask people that you trust about selecting a good primary care physician. If you are new to town, you can ask your primary care doctor ahead of time to recommend a primary care doctor in the area.
Insurance
Tips for selecting a good primary care doctor include finding out what types of insurance the doctor accepts. You can use your insurance providers list of recommended doctors to select doctors to visit and ask questions. Some insurance carriers will have a list of doctors that accept the type of insurance that you have and don't accept some other types of insurance.
Check Out the Office
Make sure that the doctor is accepting new patients. Visit the doctor's office and talk with the receptionist. See how long patients have to wait to see the doctor. Ask the receptionist how long in advance you need to make an appointment and how the doctor handles emergency visits when needed. Ask the nurse who handles the physician's patients in his absent and what hospital the doctor prefers to use if there are more than one in town.
Narrowing the Search
Selecting a good primary care physician from a list of doctors that you have considered should be accomplished by choosing the doctor that fits all of your needs. The doctor will be able to give you the best care whether it is for a routine check up or an emergency visit.
Published by Pamela Gardapee
I am currently a freelance writer fulfilling an exciting career in writing. I do part time bartending here and there to keep current on events and changes in the world. I love animals and enjoy watching them... View profile
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