A patient's guide to quality healthcare

There are tremendous advances taking place in medicine today, but in order to benefit from them, the healthcare consumer must take an active role. The best healthcare will not find you; you have to seek it out.

While the United States offers the highest standard of healthcare in the world, there can be treatment variation based on the doctor you see. Bottom line, the doctor you choose will determine the quality of care you will receive. Here is an overview of how to navigate through the healthcare system to find the best doctor for you.

As with anything in life, practice makes perfect. All clinical outcome studies confirm that the more times a surgeon performs a procedure, the better they become at it.

A second indicator of quality is training and experience of the physician. One might believe that a younger physician a few years out of training might be at a disadvantage compared to a surgeon who has practiced for 25 years or more. However, this is not an accurate generalization. In reality, an older physician may be more comfortable using traditional techniques, while a younger, fellowship-trained physician may be trained in the most modern, minimally invasive techniques and instrumentation. Age is not necessarily a good indicator of quality.

How to find a specialist

There are many ways to identify the best specialist within a given area. A good place to start is to consult a family practice doctor who addresses your general healthcare needs. This “primary care” doctor will usually know the best super-specialists within a specific region. Also, since this primary care physician may have referred patients to that specialist before, they may have seen firsthand their clinical outcomes after surgery. If these outcomes are poor, the primary doctor will not refer additional patients.

On the downside, this referral process abdicates the selection process to someone else. The educated healthcare consumer would do well to perform secondary research to identify the best possible specialists and clinics within a given specialty.

The Internet can provide a wealth of helpful information. The educated consumer can locate information on a doctor’s education, training, clinic and area of specialization.

Cues on physician competence

Fellowship training, the highest level of training in the United States, can be an indicator that the physician has invested an additional year in a specific area of specialization. Note where the physician has trained. Training at a large or prestigious institution would expose the physician to more complex cases, which in turn makes them more proficient in their chosen specialty.

Board certification is another criteria that indicates a physician has met the competency standards within an area of specialization, as judged by the specialty board. Board certification typically requires that a physician has been in practice for several years since graduating from medical school and has passed a rigorous written and oral exam.

Get a second opinion

Most health insurance plans advise or require that the healthcare consumer receive a second opinion when treatment involves a complex surgical procedure. This is excellent advice. If you have received two identical, unbiased opinions related to your diagnosis and recommended treatment, you can proceed accordingly with more confidence that you are pursuing the right approach.

If the two opinions disagree,you should examine the training and qualifications behind each opinion to determine which is most likely the correct recommendation. Another option is to pursue a third opinion, but this can add to your confusion.

The physician visit

The best specialists within a given niche will typically provide all the appropriate nonsurgical and surgical treatment options for your problem, along with the pros and cons of each approach. In some cases, treatment may include watchful waiting. If your doctor is unwilling to answer questions about your diagnosis or treatment, you’re in the wrong place. Go find another doctor.

Be a good patient

After all the searching, if you’ve found a good doctor, the rest is in your hands. To be a good patient, you must comply with the physician’s recommendations and prescriptions. Too many times, it’s natural to want a magic pill or miracle surgery to provide an easy route back to activity. However, you should always view surgery as the last card to be played, after all nonsurgical options are explored.

For nonsurgical treatment alternativesto work, the patient must often follow physician and therapist prescriptions, which may include a commitment to therapy. For spine and joint problems, this may mean incorporating special strengthening exercises that rebuild supporting muscles, so that surgery isn’t necessary. While athletes are familiar with the required commitment and pain associated with the exercise gym, others may not. It can be new territory for many people, but it is essential if you are to give nonsurgical options a chance to work.

NO PHYSICIAN REFERRAL IS NEEDED UNLESS REQUIRED BY YOUR INSURANCE

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