You also want a doctor who cares about you, who will listen carefully to your concerns, who can explain things clearly and fully, and who can anticipate your health problems. Other things that might affect your choice of a doctor include the type of health insurance you have, the location of the doctor's office, the hospital where the doctor treats patients, the age and sex of the doctor, and the languages the doctor speaks. A good first step is to make a list of the things that matter to you. Then, go back over your list and decide which are most important and which are nice, but not necessary. You might choose a family practitioner, an internist, or a geriatrician.
Family practitioners provide health care to all family members, regardless of age.
An internist is a doctor of adults. Geriatricians specialize in the care of older adults. A geriatrician first is trained in family practice or internal medicine and then has additional training in caring for older people. Medicare medical insurance helps pay for doctors' services and many other medical services and supplies that are medically necessary but are not covered by the hospital insurance part of Medicare. Medicare beneficiaries can choose how they will receive doctor, hospital, and other health care services.