Recommended Web Sites

Choosing a Family Physician - The American Academy of Family Physicians offers this advice.

Deaf or Hard-Of-Hearing: Working With Your Doctor - This fact sheet offers great advice on how to talk to your doctor.

Managed Care and You - This booklet explains how to choose a doctor.

Ask Me Three - These are the three questions you need to ask your doctor.

A Guide for People With Medicare: Choosing a Hospital - This booklet, developed jointly by the Health Care Financing Administration and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, can help you choose a hospital that will give you good quality care. This site is in PDF format and will require an Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Your Guide to Choosing Quality Health Care - The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is the lead Federal agency charged with sponsoring and conducting research on the quality and outcomes of health care services, as well as the cost, use, and access to those services. The goal of this guide is to help you find and use information to choose quality health care. This site can also be accessed in PDF format, requiring an Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing.

Before Going to the ER - Learn how to decide if you should be going to the ER or if that is not appropriate for your problem.

Choosing a Doctor - The National Institute on Aging has prepared this handout, but you don't have to be a senior citizen to read it.

Choosing a Health Care Provider For Your Pregnancy - The Mayo Clinic offers this advice.

Find a Hospital - The American Hospital Association makes this hospital finder available through MedlinePlus.

Finding the Right Hospital - This document gives you some idea of how to choose a hospital (if you have a choice).

Guide to Health Care Quality: How To Know It When You See It - Click here for great information on judging the quality of care you receive.

Health Pages: Choosing a Health Care Provider - Articles explaining how to find the right health care provider (including physicians, hospitals, and fertility clinics) can be accessed from this site.

Helping You Choose... - The Joint Commission offers help in choosing: ambulatory care, assisted living, behavioral health care, health plans, home care and hospice, hospitals, laboratory services and long term care.

Home Care Services, How To Find the Right Provider - The Mayo Clinic offers this good advice.

How to Find a Doctor or Treatment Facility if You Have Cancer - The National Cancer Institute has provided this advice on seeking cancer treatment.

Is an Older, More Experienced Doctor a Better Doctor? - This is a very short summary of a large research project, click to the site to see the answer.

KidsHealth for Parents: How to Find a Pediatrician - This site was created by the Nemours Foundation's Center for Children's Health Media and aims to provide the best children's health information on the Internet. The information found here is written specifically for parents and provides advice on finding the right doctor for you and your child.

Let's Talk Facts About Choosing a Psychiatrist - The American Psychiatric Association offers this advice.

Medicaid Participating Physicians Directory - Look here for doctors who take Medicaid patients.

MEDLINEplus: Choosing a Doctor or Healthcare Service - Developed by the National Library of Medicine, this consumer health site directs the user to selected online resources on many common diseases and conditions.

MEDLINEplus: Directories - Find a doctor, a dentist, or a healthcare facility here.

Mental Health Providers: Finding One To Suit Your Needs - The Mayo Clinic offers these tips for finding the right provider for you.

Nursing Home Guide - Consumer Reports issues this guide to the top (and bottom) of the list of nursing homes in each state.

QualityCheck - Quality Check is a comprehensive guide to the more than 15,000 Joint Commission-accredited health care organizations and programs throughout the United States.

Questions are the Answer - The US Department of Health and Human Services offers these quick tips on how to get more involved with your health care.

Selecting a CAM Practitioner - If you are looking for a health provider who specializes in complementary and/or alternative medicine, read this first.

Tips for Choosing a Dentist - The American Dental Association offers these tips.

Your Medical Care - The National Institute on Aging provides a number of fact sheets to help you choose health providers.