How to Search for a Physician

There are many sources you can check to find a physician, ranging from professional or personal referrals to online databases that list doctors by name, specialty and geographical location. These sources include sites that will tell you whether the physician you're considering is currently licensed/certified, whether he has ever been disciplined for malpractice or other professional violations.

Instructions

Sources of Information on Physicians

• 1

  If you're about to lose the physician you've been seeing because he's retiring or moving, ask him/her to refer you to one of his colleagues. This also applies if you are seeing a general practitioner but need the services of a specialist. Many doctors can connect you with doctors from other states if you're the one who's relocating. Also check with friends and relatives for referrals. While these sources aren't experts, they may know physicians with whom you might establish a good rapport.

• 2

  Use the American Medical Association online physician locator that provides professional information on more than 814,000 doctors nationwide, the AMA's "Doctor Finder" website says. You can search its database by name and location or by specialty and location.

• 3

  Check commercial sites that provide doctor directories. These are physician marketing tools that list physicians by specialty and locations. Examples include Vitals.com and Doctor Directory.com.

• 4

  Check the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Medicare website to find doctors who treat Medicare patients. You can look for physicians who accept Medicare fees as payment in full and those who don't, which would require you to pay fees Medicare doesn't cover. This site also lists physicians who work for Tricare, the company that provides coverage for active duty and retired military personnel and their families.
  Other medical associations, grouped by specialty, exist online. You can search for the type of physician you need. Links to many of these are on the "directories" section of the National Institutes of Medicine's "Medline Plus" site.

• 5

  Ask your health insurance company for a hard copy or download an electronic version of directories that list physicians who contract to treat patients enrolled in their health care plans. Be aware, though, that many of these physicians limit the number of such patients they accept because, in return for access to the employee pool, doctors must accept lower fees than what they earn in private practice.

• 6

  Do some homework to find out if the doctor you're considering has a clean professional record. First, check with the state medical board to see if its willing to provide you with this information. Some only confirm whether a physician is currently licensed/certified to practice; others provide more information. For example, the California Medical Board will give you information on whether a physician has been accused of wrong doing, disciplined by the board, accused of or committed a felony, misdemeanor or malpractice or has had his hospital privileges revoked, according to its web site.
  You can also check the Internet Health Pilot website and the Health Grades websites, among others, according to the Quackwatch website, which contains links to these and other helpful sites.