How do I find a new doctor?
November 20, 2003

Dear HouseCall Docs: My last doctor retired over a year ago and I haven’t found a replacement yet. Could you give me some ideas about how to go about choosing a new doctor in this community?
Thanks a bunch, Lester, Sonora, Ca.

Dear Lester,
What a great question. One we’re sure many people will love to see an answer to.
Before we answer the question, though, we would like to share with the readers that we both feel very fortunate to be practicing medicine in Tuolumne County, where we work within a medical community comprised of physicians of superb quality and high integrity who are dedicated to excellent patient care. Not many communities of our size have the quality of physicians that we have here.

There are actually several parts to your question. The first is how to actually locate a doctor who is taking new patients. That can be an area of difficulty, especially in our county where primary care physicians are in high demand. One way to locate a physician is to browse through the trusty yellow pages. Doctors are listed alphabetically and by specialty, and there are lots of listed there. Another technique is to ask your friends, neighbors, coworkers, bridge partners or ski instructors who their physicians are. This allows you to find out whether or not they are satisfied with the care they are receiving. The trouble with either of these referral sources is that in Tuolumne County you may need to call several physicians before you will identify one that is taking on new patients, and will be able to see you in a timely fashion.

Probably the best local resource for finding a new physician is the Sonora Community Hospital “Physician Information Line.” When you call this number (209-536-3344) a friendly hospital representative will ask you a number of questions, such as where you live, your age, what type of doctor you are looking for, what insurance you have, any special considerations you have, preference of a male or female physician, if you are willing to be seen by a midlevel practitioner, etc. After review of this information you will be given a list of physicians appropriate for your needs, whose practices are open to new patients, along with an estimate of the waiting time for new appointments. This list and these wait times are updated monthly. The physicians on this referral list are those from the hospital medical staff, and comprise the vast majority of physicians practicing in the community.

Once you have identified the physicians who are available for you to make an appointment with, there are several other factors that should be considered before entrusting one of them to provide medical care for you or your loved ones. We will discuss these considerations in our column next week. Until then, be happy and healthy.

Dr. Matt and Dr. Bob

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