Problem: His record is blemished.

Real-Life Scenario: A woman learns that her surgeon has been disciplined by the state medical board. Having already had two minor procedures with the doctor, she panics and decides to leave his practice.

Solution: Disciplinary actions aren’t always cause for alarm. A doctor can be disciplined for small offenses, such as refusing to provide a patient with medical records in a timely manner, and large ones, like negligence during surgery. You can look up a doctor’s history of disciplinary actions at Castle Connelly’s website, www.castleconnelly.com. This research and information company provides links to all 50 state medical boards. To find out the specifics about his record, you may need to call or send a letter to the board, says Candis Cohen, spokesperson for the Medical Board of California, in Sacramento.

If you find that disciplinary action has been taken, don’t be shy about asking the doctor about it (see How to Complain, right). If the record sounds extreme (he was self-prescribing medications, or he made a sexual advance toward a patient) or it makes you uncomfortable (as it did the patient above) and undermines your confidence in the doctor, then it’s time to leave.