Typically, your primary care physician will refer you to a Pulmonologist if they believe it to be necessary. You can also explore your symptoms or research your diagnosis to see what kinds of doctors commonly treat your health condition.
It’s important to find a Pulmonologist who has extensive experience treating your specific health condition. But it can be challenging to find the best Pulmonologist for you. User review sites like Yelp are often of minimal help, especially since there can be a number of problems with relying on reviews of Pulmonologists from other patients. Here at MediFind, we evaluate physicians, according to their expertise so you can quickly find a Pulmonologist near you that best fits you.
Each Pulmonologist is assessed based on research, patient volume, standing among peers, and connectedness to other physicians related to a specific health condition.
You can find a Pulmonologist in any of the 10 largest U.S. cities by clicking below:
Pulmonologist near New York, NY
Pulmonologist near Los Angeles, CA
Pulmonologist near Chicago, IL
Pulmonologist near Houston, TX
Pulmonologist near Phoenix, AZ
Pulmonologist near Philadelphia, PA
Pulmonologist near Atlanta, GA
Pulmonologist near Boston, MA
Pulmonologist near Dallas, TX
Pulmonologist in San Jose, CA
When you’re making important health decisions, it’s always recommended to get medical opinions from more than one doctor, and sometimes even more than one Pulmonologist. If you just received a diagnosis, but something in your gut tells you to seek more guidance, it’s OK to consult with another doctor or Pulmonologist to get additional insight into your condition and care. Second opinions are highly valuable because they can either confirm or disprove your original diagnosis or provide different perspectives from different Pulmonologists. If you are unsure about getting a second opinion from another Pulmonologist because you don’t want to offend your doctor, don’t let your concerns stop you. The fact is that most doctors, including Pulmonologists, will not get offended and welcome second opinions, especially if you were diagnosed with a serious or rare condition. You can even use MediFind to search for another Pulmonologist near you who can provide a second opinion.
Pulmonologists know there is new scientific research happening all the time, and in fact, it’s estimated that the total body of medical knowledge now doubles every 73 days. That’s a lot of information to keep up with, even for an excellent Pulmonologist. MediFind can help you explore the latest medical advances, research, and breakthroughs for your health condition, giving you access to the same cutting-edge information as your Pulmonologist.
Depending on your specific health condition, your Pulmonologist may bring up clinical trials during one of your appointments. Clinical trials are a type of medical research conducted by doctors and researchers, including Pulmonologists, focused on evaluating the effects of new tests and treatments on human health. The purpose of clinical trials is to find improvements or discoveries for diseases and treatments, and your Pulmonologist is likely working to stay on top of these developments. MediFind can help you easily search and filter clinical trials for your health condition that your Pulmonologist may bring up in conversation. You can also learn more about what to consider when exploring clinical trials that you may wish to discuss with your Pulmonologist.
Bring your list of concerns (or reasons for your visit) with you on a piece of paper or your phone, so you can easily recall them when speaking to your Pulmonologist. You may want to consider bringing a friend or loved one for support, and to help you recall the information after your Pulmonologist visit. Bring a notebook so you can take notes, copies of your medical records (dating back at least one year), a list of current medications, supplements and allergies to medications, your family history of disease, and a list of symptoms (and details about how long they last and how often they occur) to discuss with your Pulmonologist.
When talking with your Pulmonologist, be honest and don’t hold anything back, since your doctor can only help you with the information you give them. Understanding the full picture will give your Pulmonologist more to work with and help them provide you with the best care.
Being a “good patient” isn’t just about listening to your Pulmonologist. It’s about engaging in your health together to ensure you receive a high quality of care, which is called practicing patient autonomy. It’s important to be honest with your Pulmonologist, and hide nothing, even if it’s embarrassing. You should also speak up and voice your concerns, and listen and ask questions of your Pulmonologist. You may also consider doing your own research on your condition and talking to other patients before or after speaking with your Pulmonologist.
A few topics you may wish to ask your Pulmonologist about include: diagnosis details, symptom management, medical care, second opinions from other Pulmonologists, whether you should see a specialist near you other than a Pulmonologist, treatment plans, side effects, and expectations for follow-up appointments with your Pulmonologist.
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
Asthma
Asthma in children
Bronchiectasis
Bronchitis
Chronic cough
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Cystic fibrosis
Interstitial lung disease
Lung cancer
Mesothelioma
Occupational asthma
Pleural effusion
Pneumonia
Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary hypertension
Sleep apnea
Depending on your symptoms, a Pulmonologist near you may be able to provide a different point of view on your health than a primary care physician. You can also explore your symptoms and bring the results with you to your Pulmonologist visit for discussion.
You should always contact your Pulmonologist’s office to make sure they take your health insurance. Every Pulmonologist has different arrangements with insurance providers. The most commonly accepted insurance may not be the same everywhere, but some of the largest insurance providers are: Anthem/Blue Cross Blue Shield, Centene, UnitedHealthcare, Humana, HCSC (Health Care Service Corporation), CVS Health/Aetna, Kaiser Permanente, Molina Healthcare, and Cigna.