Primary care doctor and hospital/clinic recommendations in NYC, Manhattan, preferably below 34th.

January 27, 2012 12:19 PM

Primary care doctor and hospital/clinic recommendations in NYC, Manhattan, preferably below 34th. I am helping someone choose a new primary care doctor. We are leaning towards a practitioner who is affiliated with a good sized clinic or practice for one stop shopping convenience.

Right now we are thinking about the Phillips Ambulatory Care Clinic run by Beth Israel at 10 Union sq east. That was till I read some horror stories online about the Beth Israel emergency room on 1st ave. I know that the experience at the clinic could be totally different but my reaction just points up the fact that we just have very little to go on when making this decision. Does anyone have first hand knowledge of PACC?

So recommendations for primary care doctors and large clinical practices, below 34th st preferably, and thoughts on what hospitals
are like in the area, Beth Israel, NYU Medical Center, Bellevue etc much appreciated.

The "someone" is a women in her late fifties.

posted by flummox to health & fitness (7 answers total)

My old PCP was affiliate with Phillips. I had several tests there- mammogram, breast sonogram, multiple ultrasounds (neck, abdominal and transvaginal), and two needle biopsies (thyroid and breast). I don't have any major complaints. I had some really disparate experiences, though, depending on what I needed. For instance, I had to wait about 4 weeks to get the thyroid biopsy, but I got a breast biopsy the same day as my mammogram (and it ended up being the same doctor in both cases). I was able to get the abdominal and transvaginal ultrasounds the same morning I called (luckily I hadn't eaten).

Also wait time could vary. It's a big facility with lots of patients. But they seem to be generally pretty efficient at getting people "processed" for lack of a better word. Most of the staff, techs and doctors were pretty good. I think there was one ultrasound tech who pissed me off, but nothing else springs to mind.
posted by kimdog at 12:46 PM on January 27, 2012

How do you feel about an annual fee?

If you are OK with a $200 annual fee, One Medical is great- I get email responses from my primary care doctor, can get a same day appointment, and the doctors are so far pretty awesome. They have two offices downtown, Union Square & FiDi.

Personally, I find the $200 kind of expensive but in the larger picture worth it for the email access to my primary care doc. I do email, I don't do phones so it's nice to be able to email in questions.

Before going to them, I had a series of specialists (Neurologist for migraines, Orthopedist, Allergist, etc) and no primary care doc. I've kept the specialists I had before so far, but the docs at One Medical seem happy to work with them. Other than migraines I don't have crazy health problems, so take my recommendation as you will. I've been very happy with the doctors I've seen, though.
posted by lyra4 at 12:49 PM on January 27, 2012 [1 favorite]

Ack... I didn't really answer your direct question. I left my old PCP because she ended up being grossly negligent in correctly diagnosing a health condition that ended up nearly killing me. So, no recs there. But Phillips is alright.
posted by kimdog at 12:53 PM on January 27, 2012

I have no experience with Phillips, but I have spent a few hours in the Beth Israel ER, and it's not exactly paradise, but I've seen worse. If that's a concern and you think there will be frequent enough ER visits for it to be a problem, I'd find something affiliated with NYU instead, as their facility is nicer (in my opinion). YMMV. My PCP is great but is not affiliated with a big group, but rather a small one that includes a terrible OB/GYN and a good GI doc; MeMail me if you want his info (but based on your other criteria, I suspect you won't).
posted by bedhead at 1:04 PM on January 27, 2012

I can't given you any personal recommendations in that regard, but I just had very good luck with a doctor hunt through ZocDoc, which lists affiliations of doctors along with region and insurance providers. The doctor I ended up choosing turned out to be completely in line with the user reviews on that site, as well.
posted by greenland at 2:23 PM on January 27, 2012

My primary care doctor and OB/GYN are both at Murray Hill Medical Group, which is right at 34th and 1st Ave (so not below 34th), and I've been pleased with the care I get - the wait times are so short as to be shocking, and they have a wide selection of specialists in the practice. But I've also never had any significant health problems to be treated, so I can't speak to anything other than their routine care services.
posted by Neely O'Hara at 3:31 PM on January 27, 2012

I use Phillips in Union Sq for my primary and many specialties. I am a woman in my late 40s. My primary care is Dr. Donna Finkelstein, and over the years I've been to Dermatology, Orthopedics, Women's Health and had blood tests and imagining done there. I've been satisfied with it all. It is important to approach this clinic-like setting with patience, it will feel very different if you've been used a private practice office. With that in mind, I recommend PACC.
posted by Pineapplicious at 5:23 PM on January 27, 2012