Vetting doctors is a must. The medical white coat is not automatically a shield or a symbol of safety, competence, and implicit trust, as most of us grew up believing. You booked an appointment, you showed up, and you handed over your body to a stranger because the system suggested you should.
But the landscape of healthcare has changed. It has become a maze of “reputation management” firms, opaque billing structures, and private equity acquisitions that shift the focus from patient care to volume.
If you have ever been told “it’s probably stress,” or “your labs look normal” while you are in pain, you know that medical gaslighting is not just a buzzword. It is an erosion of dignity. It persists because most patients view the doctor as the authority figure and themselves as the passive recipient.
This guide flips that dynamic. It is a method for Investigative Living, Pillar III: Vetting doctors using public data to the person holding the stethoscope.
Phase I: The License Audit (The Official Record)
Every doctor has a medical license, and each license has its own history.
Hospital biographies are marketing documents. They list accolades, fellowships, and smiling photos. They do not list malpractice settlements, substance-related suspensions, or probation orders. To find those, you must bypass the hospital and go to the state.
The Tool: DocInfo.org (Federation of State Medical Boards) or your specific State Medical Board website are great for vetting doctors.
The Workflow:
- Start with DocInfo: This is a national database that aggregates data from all states. It’s the quickest way to see a “Yes/No” on disciplinary actions.
- Drill Down to the State: If you see a flag, or want to be thorough, search for “Medical Board License Lookup”.
- The “Public Documents” Tab: Once you find the doctor’s profile, ignore the status summary. Look for tabs or links labeled “Public Documents,” “Administrative Actions,” or “Enforcement Documents.”
What to Look For:
You are looking for PDF documents. These are legal orders, often written in dry, bureaucratic language. Scan them for these specific terms:
- “Stipulated Settlement”: The doctor admitted to valid charges to avoid a trial.
- “Probation”: They are practicing, but under supervision due to past errors or misconduct.
- “Surrender”: A massive red flag. This often means the doctor voluntarily gave up their license to avoid a likely revocation.
Insight: One malpractice settlement from 15 years ago might be bad luck. A pattern of “negligence” or “record-keeping failures” is a warning.
Phase II: The Financial Audit (Conflict of Interest)
Your doctor might love you. But they might also really enjoy the pharmaceutical company taking them to steak dinners.
Financial transparency is now a federal right. The Open Payments database reveals the exact dollar amounts doctors receive from drug and medical device companies.
The Tool: OpenPaymentsData.cms.gov
The Workflow: Input the doctor’s name. The database breaks down payments into categories:
- Food and Beverage: A few hundred dollars is normal (lunch and learns).
- Consulting Fees / Honoraria: This is the danger zone. If a doctor is receiving $50,000 a year from the manufacturer of a specific spinal implant or cardiac drug, you must ask: Is this the best treatment for me, or the best treatment for their portfolio?
- Research Payments: Generally less concerning, as this often indicates they are involved in clinical trials, but still worth noting for bias.
The Context: Finding money isn’t proof of corruption. But suppose your dermatologist prescribes a brand-new, expensive cream when a generic is available, and you uncover proof they received $15,000 from the manufacturer of that cream last year. In that case, you have the context to ask for a cheaper alternative.
Phase III: The “Real” Reviews (The Reddit Protocol)
Commercial review sites like Healthgrades or Vitals are easily groomed, and negative reviews can be removed or buried.
To find authentic patient narratives, I use Reddit. It is messy and unfiltered, but it is one of the few places where reputation management firms struggle to scrub the truth.
The Search Queries:
- site:reddit.com””
- site:reddit.com “[Clinic Name]” billing
- site:reddit.com “[Hospital Name]” “medical gaslighting”
What to Look For: I am not looking for star ratings. I am looking for patterns in behavior.
- Do multiple threads mention “rushed appointments”?
- Is there a pattern of “surprise bills” or “out-of-network” assistants?
- Do patients consistently mention being interrupted or dismissed?
Pro Tip: Check your local city’s subreddit (e.g., r/Austin, r/Boston). People often ask for doctor recommendations there, and the comments section becomes a goldmine of “Avoid Dr. X” stories that never make it to Google Maps.
Phase IV: The Ownership Check (Private Equity)
In 2025, a quiet takeover is happening. Private Equity (PE) firms are buying up independent physician practices—dermatology, gastroenterology, and emergency medicine are top targets.
Why does this matter? Research shows that PE-owned practices often aggressively cut staffing, shorten appointment times, and utilize “surprise billing” tactics to maximize returns for investors.
How I Spot It: The website looks “local,” but the ownership is corporate.
- Search: “[Practice Name]” + “acquisition” OR “private equity”.
- Check the “Careers” Page: If the job listings redirect to a massive management company you’ve never heard of, the practice is likely part of a corporate chain.
- The “Provider” Shuffle: If the website lists 20 doctors but you can never see the same one twice, it’s often a volume-based corporate model.
If a practice is PE-owned, I walk in braced for upselling and aggressive billing.
Conclusion: Vetting Doctors as Self-Respect
After these searches, I don’t ask if the person is perfect. Doctors are human. They are overworked and fallible. Instead, I question their incentives.
Do I trust that they are prescribing this drug because it works, or because of the consulting fee? Do I trust that their “clean record” is actually clean, or just hidden behind a settlement I found in a PDF search?
Researching and vetting doctors is not an attack. It is an act of self-respect. It allows you to walk into the exam room not as a passive recipient of care, but as an informed partner. When everything feels deliberately confusing, knowing how to search well is your best defense.
The Patient Investigator’s Toolkit for Vetting Doctors
1. Disciplinary Checks
- DocInfo.org: The Federation of State Medical Boards’ national database. The best first step.
- State Medical Boards: Search “Medical Board License Lookup” to find the official government search tool for your area. This is where the PDF disciplinary orders live.
2. Financial & Corporate Vetting
- OpenPaymentsData.cms.gov: The federal database for checking pharmaceutical and device manufacturer payments to physicians.
- ProPublica “Dollars for Docs“: An alternative, journalist-friendly interface for browsing financial data (though OpenPayments is the primary source).
3. Safety & Quality Grades
- Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade: Grades hospitals specifically on safety (infection rates, accidents), not just “prestige.”
- Turquoise Health: A tool for comparing hospital prices and transparency, helping you avoid billing surprises.
