Board staff can tell you if a doctor or physician assistant is licensed, or if he or she has been formally disciplined. However, by law, the board cannot reveal whether a complaint has been made against a doctor or physician assistant unless a formal complaint has been filed by the board against the doctor or physician assistant. The board cannot recommend a doctor or physician assistant, or tell you who is available in your area. Most doctors are listed by specialty in the yellow pages of your phone book. County medical societies also maintain lists of their member doctors by specialty.
Most hospitals offer doctor referral services.
Also, your insurance plan may list which doctors in your community are covered by your insurance. A doctor does have to make a patient's records available to the patient, or to the patient's representative with the patient's written authorization. The doctor may charge up to 60 cents per page for photocopies of the records, and a reasonable fee for copies of x-rays and other health care records produced by similar processes. Your complaint must be in written form and the board's investigative staff will give you written confirmation of receipt of your complaint. As soon as possible, the board will tell you what has been done about your complaint.