Advice needed: I'm considering changing one of my doctor's

In My Humble Opinion
1

Starting some years ago I had kidney stones. The urologist I got hooked up with was great, I had him overseeing my kidney’s health(and the demise of one kidney). He always seemed sympathetic and concerned and I trusted him completely.

Not quite two years ago he retired. Aaaagh!:frowning: So the last couple of times I’ve been to that office another doctor in the same practice has seen me.

He’s not a bad guy but he seems not to have the concern my previous doctor had. And he has a very thick accent that, to me, is sometimes hard to understand. When listening to him talk I have to pay very close attention or I’ll miss something.

Today I went to the urologist’s office to speak to the nurse, because I’ve been having some “irritation”, as I’ll call it, that’s suddenly got worse. I thought maybe I would need a urinalysis. Turns out after my last visit, since nothing more needed to be done then, the doctor had released me to my primary physician, so anything wrong needed to start with that. I didn’t remember that, if I’d ever been told it, and ask the nurse, “Does that mean I’m not a patient here anymore?”, and with an irritated expression she said “No, you just have to be referred by “Dr. B”, and anyway, “Dr. C” here is on vacation this week”

I was a little hurt, and left. I’ve been with that office for a very long time, and lately I’ve been treated like a number, not a human being.

It makes me want to seek out another urologist, but I’m not sure if I should. I can’t complain of the actual care in the last visits, but I’m not very happy with how I seem to be regarded now. And changing is not assurance that the next doctor will be any nicer. If I was serious I might ask my cousin, who’s a nurse in both of the big hospitals in town, and seems to know everything about the local medical scene. I trust her enough that she’s the person on my medical power of attorney, she’s not a scrap sentimental.

What do Dopers think? Is it proper to switch doctor’s after a long association? Or should I at least explore the possiblity of finding another urologist?

2

I would say, first of all, you no longer have any association. You did, with your first doctor, but he’s gone. Now you have a brand new one that you don’t really care for (or let’s say that you don’t have a relationship with yet). And since you probably don’t really know any one else in the office, medical or admin, you don’t have any relationship with them at all. If you’re going to leave, I’d say this is the time to do it. If you consider your cousin a resource, ask her for suggestions. You could even ask her how she feels about your new doctor and she might even validate your suspicions.

If it makes you feel better, if/when you switch, the old office won’t call you, they won’t ask why you’re leaving, they probably won’t even notice.

3

You don’t like your doctor. That’s the only reason you need.

4

Is this doctor just a urologist, or also a nephrologist? If you have kidney problems that are so serious you’ve already lost one, you should be seeing a nephrologist. You don’t owe them anything; you owe it to yourself to save your remaining kidney.

5

If you are unhappy or not receiving a level of care that satisfies you, you should shop for another doctor. The doctor works for you, don’t put up with inadequate service.

6

I think I may do it. I don’t question the competence of the doctor, just how he and the office seems to operate now. I sometimes wonder if an evaluation I made has influenced this situation. After my first visit to the doctor I had an invitation by email to fill out a survey on how things had gone. I was honest, saying that while I hadn’t been mistreated, I’d had to wait a long time, the doctor didn’t really look at me when asking questions, just at the computer, and that I’d found his accent difficult, although his English is completely fluent. I also mentioned that my evaluation should be taken with a grain of salt, since I was still missing the previous doctor.

7

“I think I may do it”?

Can you explain why you’re hesitating? I’m concerned that you seem to think you owe this doctor something or that you need some kind of permission to do what gives YOU confidence that you’re taking the best possible care of your health.

Some doctors aren’t very good. Some are good, but their office staffs are so difficult it’s not worth seeing them. Some may be good but you’re just not comfortable with them. You do not need anyone’s permission to seek out another doctor or even a second or third opinion. Where is this timidity re taking care of yourself coming from?

Maintaining the health of your remaining kidney IMHO should be your highest priority. For that, as someone said, you need a nephrologist. My late H lost kidney function due to type I diabetes, went on dialysis for nine months (no picnic, I assure you, and NO substitute for healthy, functioning kidneys), and then had a kidney transplant. A transplant is fantastic, BUT it requires a lot of maintenance and support medications to keep the body from rejecting the kidney. Save your kidney, if at all possible.

P.S. I’m positive your evaluation has nothing to do with it.

8

Tomorrow I’ll be talking to the cousin I mentioned, who knows a lot about the doctors around here. If she can recommend a urologist to switch to, given my health history, I’m going to do it.

I’ve had some folks telling me it won’t be any better, but I refuse to believe that. I do have doctors who seem to really care, like my general practitioner and the nurse practitioner, my dentist and his staff, and my eye doctor.

I remember when I got connected with my first urologist. I had my first kidney stone attack, and the ER staff was going to put me with a certain doctor. My mother, an RN, knew him from the work he did for retarded patients at the facility where she worked. Turns out she didn’t like him because he didn’t seem to like the patients. Again, competent but unfeeling. So she told me to refuse him and I did, so the ER staff set me up with the one I ended up liking so much.

9

Once again … you don’t need another urologist, you need a nephrologist (kidney doctor). You have only one kidney left, and you need to avoid dialysis or a transplant, if at all possible.

10

This. You need a nephrologist. Not a urologist.

11

Baker, sweetie, you are too nice. It’s okay to switch doctors if you’re not happy with the care you’re getting.

I have switched pulmonologists and dermatologists because I didn’t like how they ran their office. It’s your body and ultimately you are responsible for it. Get on the phone yesterday and find someone new.

12

Changing one of your doctor’s whaaaaaaaat?

Whether you need a nephrologist or a urologist or both depends on the status of your stone disease, the status of your remaining kidney, and the prognosis for your remaining kidney based on those statuses. (Stati?)

I’d hope your primary care doctor could help you navigate through that.

But by all means, find a doc who suits you better. Just make sure they’ve got the proper credentials like board certification in their specialty, etc.

13

I think it’s a case of the devil he knows vs. the devil he doesn’t know. He doesn’t like this doctor, but he doesn’t feel he’s a malpractice suit waiting to happen, and he’s worried he could end up with someone even worse if he changes. He may have to wade through a swamp of mediocre doctors, each of whom presents a similar dilemma, before he finds a really good one, and he isn’t looking forward to it.

I completely understand why he’s hesitating.

14

You can, while contemplating any new doctors your friend mentions, run them through Yelp as well and see how they’re rated. While Yelp won’t show you everything you need to make a decision, of course, you can at least see if there any problems with thick accents or cold, dismissive doctors.

I use Yelp when I’m making up my mind about a new doctor, and it has been a big help. It’s how I selected my primary care physician and my podiatrist.

15

Just get a new doctor. It may take more than one attempt to find a good one. Whether or not you need a nephrologist right away you ought to find one now anyway. I have only half my kidney function too so I understand this is a worrisome part of your medical situation, so don’t accept less than the best quality physicians you can find.

16

In medical school, there is someone who graduates top of their class. There is a term for this achievement:

summa cum laude

At the opposite end of the spectrum, someone graduates at the bottom of the class. There is also a term given to this person:

Doctor