Oh no – my doctor is retiring – What do I do?

Oh no - my doctor is retiring - What do I do?

Posted by Merry, Volunteer Mentor @merpreb, Jan 5, 2019

Hello- I hope that we all survived the holidays. I did knowing that before the end of the year my long time friend and pulmonologist was retiring and needed to find a new one. She was my first contact with the cancer field 21+ years ago. I Love her. She was available night and day for her patients.
She gave me five recommendations. I also asked my Thoracic Surgeon who use to work in my state. And now I have one.
There are a number of things that we need to be concerned with:
These are some of the things that I considered:

Hospital affiliation(s)
Office location(s)
Educational background
Specialty interests
Languages spoken
Years in practice
Gender
Types of insurance accepted
Review CV if available (often on affiliated hospital website).
Check out patient reviews (take them with a grain of salt in case they are skewed by an unfairly disgruntled patient).
Make sure they’re accepting new patients.

Has anyone else needed to find a new doctor and how did you make your decision? I realize that it's not that simple because of the differences in insurance companies. We can't always get who we want, and that's disheartening and scary.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Lung Health group.

penlee | @penlee | Jan 6, 2019

Merry, thank you for your suggestions for selecting a new doctor. They are good and I have considered them when selecting a doctor. My situation right now in the rural west is there are only three pulmonologist for a town of 80,000. Just snagging an appointment is my goal. Fortunately, I have a connect with a pulmonologist at Stanford I see once a year. He provides the consistent help.

Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Jan 6, 2019

@penlee– wow and I shudder to have to go 35-40 minutes to see my new one! Lol
But yours can help with Rx's over the phone? What do you do if you get sick?

penlee | @penlee | Jan 6, 2019

Lately I see my primary care physician and he does the best he can or I text Stanford and ask questions. Not ideal.

Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Jan 6, 2019

Penlee- no. But if it works it works!

Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Jan 8, 2019

Great discussion to get started, @merpreb
Do you also Google the doctor to see their online presence? For example, are they on Twitter? What about YouTube videos? Does seeing them talking in a video help? I'm biased of course, but I like seeing the physicians talk in the Video Q&A sessions we host on Mayo Clinic Connect: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/webinars/

This discussion is also closely related to and a good companion to this one:
– Your Tips on How to Get Off to the Best Start with a New Specialist https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/your-tips-on-how-to-get-off-to-the-best-start-with-a-new-specialist/

@penlee you bring up a good point. Many don't have the option of choice, especially in rural and remote locations. Do you have access to Stanford expertise through their patient portal?

penlee | @penlee | Jan 8, 2019

In reply to @colleenyoung "Great discussion to get started, @merpreb Do you also Google the doctor to see their online..." + (show)

Yes I do. I have used it and they are respond quickly.

Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Jan 9, 2019

In reply to @colleenyoung "Great discussion to get started, @merpreb Do you also Google the doctor to see their online..." + (show)

Colleen- Thank you- Excellent suggestions! Can we – you and me or someone- compile a comprehensive list, maybe videos, etc about all of this?

walisky | @walisky | Jan 10, 2019

Review their CV? What is a CV? Thank you.

Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Jan 10, 2019

In reply to @walisky "Review their CV? What is a CV? Thank you." + (show)

@walisky– A warm welcome to Mayo Clinic and Lung health. CV is Curriculum vitae, an overview of a person's experience and other qualifications, much like a resume. You'll find them if you click your doctor's name on any search engine.

walisky | @walisky | Jan 10, 2019

In reply to @merpreb "@walisky- A warm welcome to Mayo Clinic and Lung health. CV is Curriculum vitae, an overview..." + (show)

Thank you for your prompt reply. When you've worked with a doctor for years, it's so hard when they retire and you try to establish a good and trusting relationship with another.

Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Jan 10, 2019

In reply to @walisky "Thank you for your prompt reply. When you've worked with a doctor for years, it's so..." + (show)

@walisky– Very true! I hate that she has retired. It was all politics and not something that she wanted to do, which makes it even sadder. However I look forward to meeting my new team next month. He's rated very highly! Have you had this experience?

matthew33 | @matthew33 | Jan 12, 2019

In addition to all the great recommendations you listed, I check board certifications, how many years practicing and, if your state has it, verify licensing online and if there have been any malpractice lawsuits. Excellent discussion.