The ABC's Of Choosing The Best MD

What makes a good doctor?

Early Show medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton shared some tips with co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez for determining if your doctor is "Dr. Right."

Choosing a doctor is one of the most important decisions, yet people don't put that much time into it.

According to Ashton, this isn't a matter of luck or luxury, but potentially a matter of life and death.

"We take it for granted," Ashton said. "We put so much time into other things, and a lot of times people just dictate their doctor as to what name they find in a book under their plan. So it really needs to be taken more seriously."

Ashton came up with the ABC's to finding Dr. Right:

A: Available: Is your doctor available to you for questions as well as
for emergencies? Having to wait six weeks for an appointment might work for a regular check-up but if you are having a problem, that would be
unacceptable.

B: Bedside manner: Studies have shown that better doctor-patient
relationships have improved patient outcomes for certain chronic medical
conditions like headaches, high-blood pressure and sugar control in
diabetes. However, some patients may not care if their surgeon is nice
since he/she has a more limited interaction with a patient than a
doctor in primary care.

C: Credentials: Check to see if your doctor is board certified. This
refers to passing either a written and sometimes an oral exam in the
doctor's specialty. Patients may also want to know where their doctor
went to medical school and/or did their residency training. While not a
guarantee of good medical care, it at least provides a basic level of
standards.