An excerpt from Scary Diagnosis: Navigating Fear, Finding Strength, and Securing the Health Care You Deserve.

Doctors are the centerpiece of the health care system. In large part, they have designed it, written its rules, lobbied the government to support it financially, and, through doctor-friendly regulation, they are its main financial beneficiaries. For most patients, their doctor is not just the centerpiece of a huge system; they represent the entire health care system. As a result, choosing the right doctor is critical to your health.

In today’s health care system, you may have little input into selecting your doctor since your insurance company may dictate your options. You are also limited by location and your ability to obtain an appointment. But you still have agency and you should use it. Do not hesitate to offer your input.

Choosing a doctor is like hiring someone in a business.

There is a job description, an organization to work in, and customers. You are the customer, and your opinion should matter the most. An experienced human resources manager once told me that he hired people based on a “chemistry test.” He went on to explain that while he considered qualifications, experience, and the opinions of others, he relied more on his “gut feeling” about how well he could work with this person. That is the chemistry test, and you can try it with doctors you are considering “hiring” to join your team.

Perhaps a friend or relative may have offered you a suggestion for a physician to see, or a doctor you use and like may have recommended a professional colleague. Most doctors have not been patients of the physicians they are recommending so they may not know if these doctors relate to their patients as people. There is probably little about why these doctors were recommended to you that is actually related to the qualifications of the doctor or to how they relate to their patients as people.

If you think your internist or another doctor can make a judgment about these issues, you might want to think again. It is unlikely your internist tracked the treatments provided to patients by the doctor she recommended to you. And just because the doctor she is recommending was personable to her does not mean the new doctor will be understanding and considerate with you.

However, relying on a recommendation may be the best you can do, and I have had some referrals work out wonderfully. Today the vast majority of doctors are employed by hospitals or clinics. Only fourteen percent of doctors are in private practice. The implication for patients is troublesome. Doctors in private practice are likely to remain in private practice for most of their careers. Doctors employed by a large medical institution are more likely to move around within their institution and less likely to maintain a steady group of patients in their practices. Patients using doctors with hospital staff positions and should be prepared to frequently start over with a new physician at times. In addition, the staff doctor is given guidelines by the hospital or clinic administration to see more patients more quickly, often within six to ten minutes per patient. This is not enough time to for either the doctor or the patient to ask important questions and listen carefully to the answers.

So what kind of doctors do you want, and how do you find them? First, you need a doctor who is expert in your particular health problem. Friendly and charming is nice, but do you want your epitaph to be: He had a friendly and charming doctor? Finding your expert is not hard. Start by Googling your disease or medical issue, look for a treatment center or a foundation focused on helping people with this issue, and see who has received grants from the main federal agencies that fund scientific research, The National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. In a short time, you will have found the experts.

Then you must determine if this doctor sees patients or just does research. When you finally meet this doctor, give him or her a chemistry test: In other words, is the chemistry between you and the doctor good? Does this doctor display empathy that reassures you that he or she will listen carefully to your concerns and give you the time you need to communicate the answers. Trust your judgment.

Doctors are craftspeople

Similar to a customer who calls a carpenter when a drawer on a cabinet will not close, patients show up when something hurts. Both doctors and craftspeople fix the problem as quickly as possible and they move on. But doctors should also be teachers. They should regard their role as sacred. They are asked to take important actions that impact the length and quality of their patients’ lives. They are entrusted with confidential information which many patients share with no one else. And many patients look up to them as gods or near gods, as my parents did. Treating a patient as a ten-minute assignment followed by checking the appropriate boxes is a disgrace because of all the teaching opportunities missed.

When doctors engage with patients they have the opportunity to teach them about their health and what they can do to maintain or improve their well-being. The doctor can assess the patient’s knowledge and add to it in important ways by filling in the gaps. Moreover, a physician can provide motivation for the patient to improve their health regimens. Sadly, few doctors take the time to do this. If, after an interaction or two, you believe that a doctor is more interested in telling you what to do than in informing you about your situation and answering your questions, find another doctor.

Five guidelines for choosing the right doctor

Choose a doctor who specializes in what you have. If you have kidney cancer, find a specialist in kidney cancer (not just kidney disease or cancer) but kidney cancer. The most experienced doctors work in specialized centers that focus on your disease.

Find a doctor who is “service-oriented.” There will come a time during your treatment when you want to reach your doctor quickly. Check with the staff and other longtime patients to confirm that this doctor responds to your needs without undue delay.

Select a doctor who trained at a top hospital. Doctors spend four years in medical school and then complete an internship for one year and a residency for two to three years. This is followed by a fellowship in their chosen specialty. Of course, where they attended medical school matters, but, in my opinion, it is more important that their postgraduate training has been done in a hospital with a strong record for handling patients like valued customers. Having been trained in such a system, doctors will bring those values and practices to their patients.

Give your prospective doctor a chemistry test. Well, not that kind of chemistry test. Give them the “personal chemistry” test to see if you feel comfortable with this person. For example, are you willing to share all the details of your health with your doctor? Do you feel that, in addition to a professional relationship, there is a personal connection? Did the physician communicate relevant information and your diagnosis in a gentle way that allowed you time to ask as many questions as you wanted?

Money, money, money. Money should not figure into your relationship with your doctor in the least. Most doctors who work in clinics or hospitals are salaried employees. Those in private or group practices share in the profits of the practice and are more like entrepreneurs. If you have the impression that the office looks fancy with expensive furniture, it might signal that the doctor values his or her decorator more than their patients. It might be a good time to move on.

Edward G. Rogoff is a professor of entrepreneurship, patient advocate, and author of Scary Diagnosis: Navigating Fear, Finding Strength, and Securing the Health Care You Deserve.