Excellent Internist (Primay Care Physician) Doctor in Los Angeles Area??

I really like Dr. Cindy Mercer in Rolling Hills. Might be a bit of a hike but I think she's worth it. I should mention I'm very picky and it took me a long time to find someone that I like.

Try Malena Law in Santa Monica. Love her, but I think she is planning to go on maternity leave very soon.

I'd recommend vising the website for the professional organization for Internists, the American College of Physicians (ACP.org). They usually have links to find physicians in your area.

I'd also recommend looking-up local hospitals to see if you can find a doc via their website - usually they have the ability to filter by location (usually radius from your house), gender, etc. They'll have a brief bio on the physician.

If you can't find a female, call offices to see if they have Nurse Practitioners associated with them who are female. Just like physicians, there are good ones and not-so-great ones, but some of the Nurse Practitioners/Physician Assistants I've known professionally are every bit as competent as the physicians with whom they work.

Sites like Angie's List, HealthGrades, etc. are OK, but they're a little biased and not too commonly used, so the information is skewed.

One trick of the trade is to find a busy professional medical building near a hospital close to your house. Sit in the entry and ask a pharmaceutical rep walking in if they have any advice. I'm a former rep, and we quickly learn who the good, compassionate physicians are vs. those with poor bedside manners. They may have great recommendations as well. The key is finding one who is accepting new patients.

One last thing - I learned this by seeing an Oncologist. Sometimes, their brilliance is the main reason to see them because their bedside manner lacks. But, I'd rather have a physician who is brilliant and a nurse who has the bedside manner of an angel.

Good luck!

Alice Cruz out of Cedar's Hospital