fo Patient Concerns

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Patient Advocacy Foundation
Patient Advocacy Services - patient advocate organization.
Patient Access Coalition - information about the standard of care, patients rights and managed care services.

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Preparing for Your First Oncology Consultation (Oncolink) - Describes the different types of oncologists that patients see for evaluation and treatment.  Offers a checklist of things patients can do to prepare for an oncology consultation that can make the experience easier.
Personal and Family Health History (AMA Health Insight) - Stresses the importance of tracking medication, changes in your health, your medical history and the medical histories of family members.  Online  AMA Personal Health History Form facilitates process of tracking and maintaining your health history.
Your Health Care Team: Your Doctor is Only the Beginning (NCI Cancer Facts) - Describes cancer health care professionals and their roles: social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, home health aides, rehabilitation specialists, dietitians, clergy, and hospice care specialists.
Patients' Perspectives: Managing Your Medical Records (yana.org) how to manage your own medical records.
Physician-Patient Communication (R.A. Bloch Cancer Foundation) - Offers guidelines for improving communications between patients and physicians.
Second Opinions - "Does Everyone Need a Second Opinion?" by Ernest H. Rosenbaum, MD.
Multidisciplinary Second Opinion Institutions (R.A. Bloch Cancer Foundation) - A state by state list of physicians to provide a multidisciplinary second opinion including patient institutions.

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Medline - provides a list of links to health organizations with provider evaluation.
NCQA - National Committee for Quality Assurance
JCAHO - Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
AAHP - American Association of Health Plans
AHA - American Hospital Association
HCFA - Health Care Financing Administration
AHCPR - Agency for Health Care Policy and Research
AMA - American Medical Association
ABMS - medical education, as well as residency information on all doctors board certified through the ABMS.

• Alabama
• Arizona
• California http://www.docboard.org/ca/df/casearch.htm
• Colorado http://www.dora.state.co.us/medical
• Florida http://www.doh.state.fl.us/irm00PRAES/praslist.asp
• Georgia http://www.sos.state.ga.us/plb/
• Indiana http://www.state.in.us/hpb/
• Iowa http://www.docboard.org/ia/ia_home.htm
• Kansas http://www.ink.org/public/boha
• Maine http://www.docboard.org/me/df/mesearch.htm
• Maryland http://www.docboard.org/md/df/mdsearch.htm
• Massachusetts http://www.massmedboard.org/
• Minnesota http://www.docboard.org/mn/df/mndf.htm
• Missouri http://www.ecodev.state.mo.us/pr/healarts/listings.html
• Nebraska http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/crl/crlindex.htm
• New York http://www.nysed.gov/dpls/opnme.html
• New York Disciplinary http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/opmc/main.htm
• North Carolina http://www.docboard.org/nc/df/ncsearch.htm
• Ohio http://www.state.oh.us/med/
• Oklahoma http://www.osbmls.state.ok.us/
• Rhode Island http://www.docboard.org/ri/df/search.htm
• Rhode Island Disciplinary http://www.docboard.org/ri/discipact.htm
• Tennesee http://www.state.tn.us/health/
• Texas http://www.tsbme.state.tx.us/
• Vermont http://www.docboard.org/vt/df/vtsearch.htm
• Virginia http://www.dhp.state.va.us/
• Wisconsin http://www.drl.state.wi.us
• State Medical Boards (mailing addresses, phone numbers, and web addresses) http://www.fsmb.org/members.htm
• The Federation of State Medical Boards http://www.fsmb.org/consumer.htm
  This particular link offers some explanation as to what the Federation does and the responsibility of states when they extend licensee to a physician.