Find Safe and Decent Health Care*
Finding a Doctor
If you want to dig deeper before settling on a doctor, there are several sources beyond simply asking your friends and neighbors.
You will also need to check the physician directory for your insurance plan to see who accepts your insurance. In most cases, these directories are online but you may also check your insurance card for a customer service number and call them for assistance. Sometimes these online directories have information about which practices are accepting new patients and other descriptions of the practice or physician that may be helpful.
Agency for Health Care Quality and Research is one division of the Department of Health and Human Services that supports research initiatives that seek to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, effectiveness, and cost effectiveness of health care for Americans.
They offer some Tips to Help you Find a Good Doctor: http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/cc/cc071508.htm and a wide range of materials here: http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/qualcare.html
301-427-1364
American Academy of Family Physicians is a national medical organization representing 94,700 family physicians, family medicine residents, and medical students. Its mission is to preserve and promote Family Medicine while guaranteeing high quality, cost effective health care for patients of all ages.
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/pat-advocacy/healthcare/836.html
Consumer Health Ratings.com rates performances of hospitals, health plans, physicians, nursing homes, home health agencies and other health care providers.
http://www.consumerhealthratings.com
608-832-6609
Medicare.gov can assist with finding a Medicare provider, comparing hospitals, home health agencies, nursing homes, and dialysis facilities. The resource locater at the bottom of the home page allows for various searches.
http://www.medicare.gov
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
Medline Plus is a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. It is a large database that provides numerous links to locate doctors, hospitals, dentists, clinics, other health care providers and facilities.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/directories.html
The Informed Patient Institute operates as an independent nonprofit organization which provides credible online information about health care quality and patient safety. It rates the usefulness of publicly accessible websites that provide online health care report cards for nursing homes and physicians.
http://www.informedpatientinstitute.org
410-268-0189
Standards for Health Professionals
These organizations provide information about training, certification and licensing of health care professionals:
The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), established in 1933, is a non-profit organization that has been overseeing the certification of physician specialists in the United States for more than 75 years. Board Certification by one of the 24 ABMS Member Boards is regarded as the gold standard by hospitals, insurance companies and, increasingly, patients looking for demonstration of a physician's training, competence and commitment to lifelong learning in a particular medical specialty and/or subspecialty. To find out if your doctor is Board Certified by an ABMS Member Board, call toll-free 1-866-ASK-ABMS or visit www.CertificationMatters.org.
There are many health professionals that are not physicians. Here is information about some you may encounter.
American Academy of Nurse Practitioners
http://www.aanp.org/AANPCMS2
American Academy of Physician Assistants
http://www.aapa.org/about-pas/becoming-a-physician-assistant
The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant
http://www.arc-pa.org/
American Association of Medical Assistants
http://www.aama-ntl.org
American National Standards Institute (this organization certifies medical technologists, laboratory technicians and phlebotomy technician certification programs).
http://www.ansi.org
American Nurses Association
http://www.nursingworld.org
Nursing Degree Guide at http://nursingdegreeguide.com/ offers a comprehensive database of nursing programs accredited by the CCNE and NLNAC -- featuring interviews with practicing nurses, expert articles, and accreditation information.
Finding Patients' Ratings of Doctors
Just like reader recommendations on Amazon.com or hotel tips on Trip Advisor.com, doctor recommendations are being collected on local "service sites" such as http://www.yelp.com and http://www.angieslist.com. These sites, searchable by category of service and geographic location, can let you know what other patients thought of a doctor's listening skills, accessibility and even waiting room comfort. But keep in mind that these services are fairly new, reflect individual experiences and rarely provide complete information on all physicians.
DrScore is a website that patients are allowed to rate their doctor and view other patient's ratings of doctors for free.
http://www.drscore.com
info@drscore.com
RateMDs allows you to find other patient ratings of family doctors by zip code or to find any doctor's rating by a region. It also allows you to see state medical board records, get maps and contact information.
http://www.ratemds.com
Paying for Physician Credentials and Ratings
There are a number of private services that collect and maintain information about the credentials and performance of doctors. Fees range from nominal to hefty.
Best Doctors is a for-profit independent group which has compiled a list of 50,000 top doctors around the world as the basis of a consultation service that they offer to patients, employers and health insurance carriers. When uncertainty arises about a medical diagnosis or treatment plan, expert doctors from around the world can provide advice. A medical advocate takes your medical history when you call, and best doctor complies all of your medical information including tests and records, and works on your case to provide a summary report of their findings to review with your physician.
http://www.bestdoctors.com
info@bestdoctors.com
1-866-904-0910
Castle Connolly Medical Research Inc. offers a doctor-patient advisor, which is a one-on-one consultation service that pairs patients with a physician or specialty-trained nurse. These individuals help the patient find an appropriate specialist. The service costs $375.
http://www.castleconnolly.com/about/advisory.cfm
212-367-8400, ext. 16
Consumers' Checkbook: Consumers' Guide to Top Doctors surveyed 340,000 doctors in the U.S. to determine who other doctors would select to care for a family member or friend. The Top Doctors database contains 23,000 doctors who were mentioned most often. The book (or online access to the database for one year) costs $24.95.
http://www.checkbook.org/doctors/pageone.cfm
1-800-213-7283 (toll-free)
HealthCare Credentials Check is a website owned by LexisNexis. Patients can search for a physician for free. Individual physician single reports cost $7.95, and a 24-hour day pass for the site with unlimited access to reports is $11.95.
https://personalreports.lexisnexis.com/doctor_healthcare_check/search.jsp
HealthGrades provides reports and ratings of doctors, hospitals, and nursing homes. Physician reports cost $12.95 and $9.95 for each additional report in one order.
http://www.healthgrades.com
303-716-0041
Selecting and Building a Relationship with your Doctor
Choosing a doctor, if possible, and building a relationship with that individual is important to ensure comprehensive and quality care.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality "Choosing a Doctor" has several questionnaires to fill out to help you with your doctor search.
http://archive.ahrq.gov/consumer/qnt/qntdr.htm
The National Institute on Aging has a site on choosing a doctor with a thorough list of questions and links to medical associations that can provide more information on particular specialties. It also provides helpful information for talking with your doctor.
http://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Publications/choosing.htm
http://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Publications/TalkingWithYourDoctor/default.htm
301-496-1752
Choosing a Hospital
Hospital rankings and ratings have become more widely available. Although you might not be able to freely choose a hospital if your doctor only has privileges in one place, your insurance only applies to certain facilities or if you can't travel far, it can be helpful to know whether there are any differences in the possibilities available to you.
American Cancer Society
Choosing a Doctor and Hospital
http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/FindingandPayingforTreatment/ChoosingYourTreatmentTeam/choosing-a-doctor-and-a-hospital
Consumers' CHECKBOOK is an independent, nonprofit consumer organization that provides consumers information to help them get high quality services and products at the best possible prices. They produce a National Guide to Hospitals that can be purchased for $22 from their site.
http://www.checkbook.org/hospital
HealthGrades offers free information on how over 5,000 hospital facilities rate on 28 common medical conditions or procedures. More detailed reports on individual hospitals, including safety ratings, the average length of stay in the hospital and cost of common procedures, are available for $9.95 and $2.95 for each additional report in one order.
http://www.healthgrades.com
(303) 716-0041
Hospital Compare is a service from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services which allows you to search for Medicare-certified hospitals in your area. You can find out about how they rate in terms of quality care such as heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia compared to other hospitals nationwide (where performance data is available). In some cases, patient satisfaction and general medical care ratings are also provided. The site also allows you to compare up to three hospitals side-by-side.
http://www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov
Quality Check is the Joint Commission's search engine to locate Joint Commission accredited health care organizations in the United States. You can search by city and state, by name or by zip code.
http://www.qualitycheck.org
The Leapfrog Group offers quality and safety ratings online for free. The ratings measure hospitals' performance in areas such as patient safety, technology, high risk procedures and intensive care, rather than specific procedures or diseases. Leapfrog uses information that hospitals report voluntarily, so their ratings may not be available for all hospitals in your area.
http://www.leapfroggroup.org
(202) 292-6713
US News America's Best Hospitals
http://www.usnews.com/besthospitals
Choosing a Nursing Home
Choosing a nursing home for a family member can be a challenging and exhausting process. Insurance providers may offer coverage at certain facilities, and you should contact your insurance company directly. Resources are available to help guide your decisions.
American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging is a non-for-profit organization that provides information about aging services.
http://www.aahsa.org/choice.aspx
info@aahsa.org
202-783-2242
Medicare.gov has a site devoted to information about nursing homes. An interactive tool allows patients to compare nursing homes. Information is provided about payment and patient rights, along with a nursing home checklist.
http://www.medicare.gov/nursing/overview.asp
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
The Informed Patient Institute operates as an independent nonprofit organization which provides credible online information about health care quality and patient safety. It rates the usefulness of publicly accessible websites that provide online health care report cards for nursing homes and physicians.
http://www.informedpatientinstitute.org
410-268-0189
When to Seek Care
Most of the popular online health information sites like WebMd and MedHelp also include some basic information on managing sudden symptoms of illness or accidents. Your insurance plan may also offer general guidance. Some people have household guides such as the American Medical Association Family Medical Guide, the American College of Physicians Complete Home Medical Guide, or the Healthwise Handbook®, which may have been provided by an employer. Whenever you are in doubt, however, you should call your primary physician's office and seek advice. Or if it is clear that there is an urgent need, go directly to the closest emergency room or call 911 for assistance.
Everyday Health provides online consumer information from board-certified experts at top-tier institutions. One service allows you to select your symptoms to determine whether or not you should see a doctor.
http://www.everydayhealth.com/symptom-checker
United Health Care is a division of the insurance company UnitedHealth Group that offers general advice as to when to visit your family doctor, urgent care, or the emergency room. Your insurance company pay also offer general guidelines that may be useful.
http://www.uhc.com/source4women/take_control_of_your_care/knowing_when_to_seek_emergency_care.htm
*Resources were verified by the Center for Advancing Health on August 5, 2011 and are provided in alphabetical order.
The Center for Advancing Health is funded by