Doctor dilemma

I had an appointment with the lady doctor yesterday. My usual doctor retired sometime last year without telling me, and since she supposedly hand-picked the woman who replaced her, I decided there was no reason to search for someone else.

Well, the new lady was disappointing. She seemed competent enough and I do give her credit for being on time and not wasting any of mine, but there was no personal interaction, no bedside manners. It was all business—she probably said less than fifty words to me the entire time I was there.

The visit was adequate; I got the prescription I needed. But for a routine checkup, it was too routine. I miss my old doctor, a witty grandmother figure who I could talk to about anything, who I could ask any question. Yesterday I was so grateful there was not a pressing issue I wanted to discuss, because I would not have felt comfortable opening up to this stranger who made no effort to be otherwise.

The problem is, I don't know how to find a better replacement. I guess next year I can pick someone random from the list of doctors who take my insurance, but I'm loathe to subject my private parts to chance. And it's not like these people are reviewed on Yelp!

All of this is just to say I wish there were health counselors who could help match patients up with doctors, and I'm not talking about 1-800-DOCTORS. The services would have to be unbiased and the necessary analyses pretty complex, but surely it is possible to create a trustworthy network of healthcare providers. This is the kind of problem I feel my generation should be solving. Does complaining count as a start?