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Checking
Quality
Look for a doctor who:
- Is rated to give quality
care.
- Has the training and background
that meet your needs.
- Takes steps to prevent illness-for
example, talks to you about quitting smoking.
- Has privileges at the hospital
of your choice
- Is part of your health
plan, unless you can you afford to pay extra
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- Encourages you to ask questions.
- Listens to you.
- Explains things clearly.
- Treats you with respect.
Once
you have a list of doctors, there are several ways to check
on their skills and knowledge, and the quality of care they
provide:
- Find
out if a consumer or other group has rated doctors in
the area where you live. You will want to find out how
reliable the ratings are.
- Information on doctors in
some States is available on the Internet from Administrators
in Medicine, a group of
State medical board directors.
- The American
Board of Medical Specialties
(800-776-2378) can tell you if the doctor is board certified.
"Certified" means that the doctor has completed a training
program in a specialty and has passed an exam (board)
to assess his or her knowledge, skills, and experience
to provide quality patient care in that specialty.
Primary care doctors also may be certified as specialists.
While board certification is a good measure of a doctor's
knowledge, it is possible to receive quality care from
doctors who are not board certified.
- The American
Medical Association (AMA) has
information on training, specialties, and board certification
about many licensed doctors in the United States. This
information is available by phone (800-665-2882) or in
DoctorFinder at AMA's website.
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