Need a Doctor? Get in or on line.
Looking for a Doctor? How about a guide for medical services in general? Medical Services, it is not a way we typically talk to one another about healthcare but it is what we are looking for. These are the physicians and medical specialists that we look to for help and often when we are most vulnerable. We value these services using more specific terms like Doctor, Doctor of Osteopathy, Cardiologist , Pediatrician, Neurologist, Dermatologist, or Nurse Practitioner. These are the people we look for when our body is not quite working right or we want to reassure ourselves on annual basis that our bodily functions are reasonably running well. Easing our fears is a large part of our need for medical services over the course of our lives.
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In the age of immediate requests for information we are quick to self diagnose and then proceed with caution to get to the best possible care that we can afford and attain. This is when we seek guides. And now the journey gets busy looking for data that is fragmented, often out of date, or just wrong. In the medical services world the lay of the land changes fast. And the tension level rises.
So what do you do, where do you turn? If you are like most you ask around. Friends, every last one of them loves their Doctors. And what’s not to love, their Doctors know every last inch of our friends, inside and out. The Doctors you most often don’t hear about are the bad ones. They’re in the news and in some conundrum. After the upheaval of being in front of a Doctor and dealing with the outcomes they deliver, most of us keep quiet until we are asked and, we love our Doctors. No one goes to a bad Doctor. There’s nothing special to tell because they are “Special.”
There are reviews online. Google Physician Reviews are an interesting read. YouTube options are even more so. There are numerous online sites that are review capable such as paid sites, insurance sites, and general medical sites. These offer a level of distance from the situation and sometimes sparks will fly. You can gain some insight but often it will be rather one sided. Again not the best of help but it can point you to the appropriate questions to ask of friends and when interviewing a Doctor. Local sites offer some information such as VeroBeach.com after that newspaper’s and magazine websites will have Doctors that advertise listed.
As an adjacent search you may want to look at your Facebook page and
search there. Many physicians are building these pages to draw in more patients and to personalize their practices. Here is a simple Facebook search for Doctors in Vero Beach as an example.
Then there is the function of the marketplace. We have Walk In Medical Clinics all over our com
munities marketing themselves directly to us. Check out the numerous videos on Youtbe.com. These “clinics” operate a variety of models providing any number of Doctors in a very retail setting. Commoditized medicine for the masses. It accomplishes two things, one is it makes Doctors or at least medical services more readily available than in ever before. Number two; it frees us from Emergency Room visits in the event that we cannot get to our regular Doctor. These events happen and we would prefer to see our Doctor but due to the timing or the need we are inclined or forced to go to these walk-in clinics. In the case of an on the job injury employers may require people to go to specific clinics so that their interests are protected.
Click Image to View the Medical Service Guide
With all of this searching there is a paradox with ironic elements to using the Internet to find Medical Service providers. Often it feels like a dance that ends with us reeling and in some cases with the worst possible partner. It should be easy to find the Doctors and health care we need but it depends heavily on the County where you are searching. Indian River County is not so bad as that but you still want assurances that you are landing on a good Medical Services provider.
Another solution is to go a trusted source. For over 25 years the Guide to Medical Services has been publishing a little blue book that will focus your search and help you verify your results in real time. Of course continue to go to your friends as a trusted advisor with personal experiences to share with you. Yes, go online and look at any and all sources available to you as you search. Start with the Guide to Medical Services and you’ll be able to narrow your search faster and more effectively ask the right questions. It is easily found in Pharmacies, Doctors Offices and Medical Service provider’s waiting rooms throughout Indian River County.
Find the Table of Contents, on page 2 in the current edition. Physicians are listed by their Specialty in section one. Subsequent sections are there to help you navigate the waters of the medical services in the County. This is a guide to point you directly to the offices with answers. At some point many of these service providers will be the follow up after seeing your Doctor. Many people have specialists and build a team of Doctors and Medical Service providers to mange the health care you or a loved one needs.
That is another reason the Guide For Medical Services is so effective. It is a bit over 5” X 8” fitting easily into a purse, briefcase, or in the carry on bag of a loved one from out of town. When you need information from your Doctor’s records this book has their office and fax numbers so that information and quickly be shared. There are HIPPA restrictions involved and the Medical Services Community itself trusts this book for these same reasons. You will find one on the Doctor’s Administrator and Director of Nursing’s desks throughout the Indian River County. The Guide for Medical Services is one of the best resources for you to make your search for Medical Services complete.
Cindy Bryant Publisher
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