When it comes to protecting your health, if there is anyone you can rely upon, it is your physician. Your physician or your doctor is the person who can evaluate your medical condition, treat you accordingly and guide you through your illness. Choosing your physician becomes a very important decision as that is the first step towards treating your illness. Your physician is someone you can trust completely, not only for your medical condition, but for your emotional condition as well.
– General physicians
General physicians are those who treat general medical illnesses and are trained in all medical areas. Most of the times they are family doctors who treat and take care of the whole family. When there is a situation that demands additional care in any medical specialty, they put you across specialist physicians. It is comfortable for you and your family to trust the specialists, when they are referred to you by your regular general physician.
– Specialist physicians
These are specialists is a particular area of medicine or surgery and they deal with only that particular system. For example, ophthalmologist deals with diseases of the eye, or orthopedist deals with bones and joints.
– Training of doctors
Doctors undergo a university program and are professionally trained in general medicine or other specialties. They are experts in their respective area of specialization. They can evaluate, diagnose and treat medical conditions under their area of expertise. They are aware of the latest treatment methods, medical technologies, and other preventive health measures. They need to undergo regular continuous medical education (CME) programs to keep themselves updated.
You need to be aware of these guidelines and look out for qualifications and regular training programs undertaken by your doctors.
What you expect
You would like to see such doctors who can spare time to listen to your medical history and other relevant information. Good doctors can take the case history very well and a well taken history means the case is half solved. They should be able to evaluate your condition and examine you clinically before reaching to any conclusions. Their approach should be preferably straight and be able to give simple instructions that you can follow.
You want the doctor to listen to your questions patiently and answer them to your satisfaction. You should be comfortable to talk to your doctor and feel better after sharing your complaints.
Your checklist
Some of the aspects that you can check for before choosing your physician are:
- Where is their clinic located and their timings?
- How is the clinic and the staff?
- Do they accept your medical insurance?
- Are they attached to other multispecialty hospitals?
Choosing your physician is just the initial step. Building a rapport takes time and you too play an important role in developing a good relationship with your doctor.