First of all, let’s get honest about hep B doctors. There aren’t many, and so, the biggest obstacle to receiving care is finding an experienced doctor.

I live in Idaho, which doesn’t have a lot of HBV docs. What I did is find expert doctors online and then made appointments with them. This meant flying to Cedars Sinai (Dr. John Vierling), Stanford (Dr. Emmett Keeffe), and ultimately to Salt Lake City for treatment. I’m almost embarrassed to admit how many other doctors I’ve seen over the years.

However, on the upside, I think my experiences qualify me to write this article on finding a good doctor.

First, your best bet is to see a “hepatologist” who specializes in liver diseases. Hepatologists are most likely to know the state-of-the art in managing and treating HBV. For a long time, there were no hepatologists in my state. Then in 2001, an online friend from Nashville wrote to me that his “wonderful Dr. Hunter” was moving to my city Boise. I perked up and decided that it might be time to refer myself to doctor No. 11.

Dr. Ellen Hunter turned out to be a hepatologist, a graduate of Georgetown University, awarded fellowships at Mayo and Vanderbilt, and to add to the miracle, she was NICE!

Dr. Hunter was surprised to find she already had a patient waiting for her in Boise, but she told me that most of her practice comes from patient referrals. That’s a good sign!

Hopefully, you can also find a doctor who understands that “people skills” are as important as “medical skills.” My Dr. Hunter has respect and empathy for her patients, and takes the time to explain things in layman’s terms. In addition, she always tries to be positive and give her patients hope.

1) Ask your HBV friends for recommendations. You can instantly make 1,000 such friends by joining our Hepatitis B Information and Support list. To subscribe, send a blank email to: hepatitis-b-on@mail-list.com.

2)Check out Hepatitis Central at http://hepatitis-central.com/hcv/drs/toc.html where patients worldwide recommend their good doctors who treat hepatitis.

3)Ask how many HBV patients a doctor sees before making a new appointment.

4)Invite your local doctor to partner with a liver specialist. Often, your local doctor and an “expert” doctor in a larger city are willing to team up. I’ve participated in such an arrangement where I found an HBV specialist online, and then, with the cooperation of my local doctor, this specialist directed my treatmen from afar.

5) Become an HBV expert yourself, and find a doctor who is willing to make you an equal partner in your care and treatment. Finally, Dr. Hunter asked me to caution patients to not get so involved in HBV that they neglect other aspects of staying healthy like getting a colonoscopy at age 50. In my case, she has included PSA and cholesterol testing with my regular HBV blood work.

Yes, there are good doctors out there, and I’m hoping everyone can (finally) find one like mine.

Best wishes,
Steve