How to Choose Your Primary Care Doctor

Having the right doctor for your everyday medical needs is important. You want them to be able to see you when necessary and to refer you to a specialist when needed. There are also a few other concerns that you need to think about before selecting a primary care doctor.

Choosing a Doctor for the Family

When you are single, the type of doctor you have may not matter very much, because you may not go that often anyway. After you are married, however, all of that changes. You want to be able to find a family practice that can treat the whole family.

Select a Doctor That Listens

Many doctors really do not listen much to their patients. Of course, it is understandable on occasion because they may have an emergency patient waiting for them. However, you want a doctor that will listen to you and your medical related thoughts and questions.

Choose an Honest Doctor

Some doctors are afraid to tell people the truth, especially when it comes to your weight. If a doctor is afraid to tell you that you need to lose weight, then you are not being told all that you should know – whether you like to hear it or not.

Get a Doctor in Your Network

If you have health insurance, then you most likely will need to choose a primary care physician. This doctor will serve as the “gateway” into the insurer’s health system. You will need to go through him or her to be recommended to specialists, which is why you need to be sure they are also in the system.

This is not necessary, though, if you have a medical plan that will let you select a doctor for your needs. Most plans, such as HMO’s, will limit you to their doctors, or you will likely have to pay the bill yourself.

Get Special Medical Help

There are many doctors out there. It only makes good sense to find one to be your primary care doctor who specializes in particular problems that you or one of your family members faces. Younger women, for instance, may want to choose a gynecologist to be their primary physician. An older person would likely do well to select a geriatrician to be their main doctor.

Look for a Whole Person Approach

Doctors largely come in two different varieties. The standard doctor that most people are familiar with is an MD, or Medical Doctor. They primarily aim to treat symptoms. The other kind of doctor, and they both receive the same amount of education, is a DO, or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. This doctor was trained to look for problems in the whole man, rather than just providing for immediate needs.

As you look around for the right primary care doctor, be sure to also select one that is close by. It does little good to choose one that is not close enough to help you in emergencies, or to provide care on a regular basis, if that should be needed.