Choose the San Diego doctor who's right for you
At Sharp, we accept almost all health insurance plans. Browse our medical specialties and services provided by doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants across San Diego County. View all specialties.
We're here to help
Your primary care doctor (also called primary care physician or PCP) is your main doctor, and will become familiar with your health history, coordinate your care and help you get treatment from specialists when needed. Doctors who specialize in family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics — as well as some OBGYNs and cardiologists — are all considered primary care doctors.
Family medicine and internal medicine doctors are both types of primary care doctors. Family medicine doctors care for patients of all ages. Internal medicine doctors see patients age 18 and older.
Most insurance plans allow you to switch your primary care doctor once per month. This includes changes between health systems. You do not need to wait for open enrollment as long as your new doctor accepts your health insurance.
It’s a good idea to find a primary care doctor you are comfortable with and who is conveniently located, so they can get to know your health needs and history over time.
If you want to change your primary care doctor, we make it easy to search for a new doctor based on location, specialty and more. Be sure to inform your health plan of any change to your primary care doctor.
To deliver your baby at Sharp, choose an OBGYN who delivers at one of our childbirth hospitals: Sharp Chula Vista, Sharp Grossmont or Sharp Mary Birch. You can filter your doctor results by insurance plan, gender, language spoken and more.
If you’d like help finding the right OBGYN for you and your family, call 1-800-82-SHARP (1-800-827-4277) and our specially trained physician-referral nurses can answer your questions and schedule your first appointment.
Sharp accepts most health insurance plans. View the plans we accept to find out if you’re covered. Don’t see your health plan listed? We can help. Call us at 1-800-82-SHARP (1-800-827-4277), Monday through Friday, 7 am to 7 pm.
Existing patients: If you are an existing patient with a Sharp primary care doctor (meaning you have seen your doctor at least once), simply call their office to make an appointment. Some doctors also offer online scheduling through their doctor profile and the Sharp app.
New patients: If you have selected a doctor, but have not yet had your first appointment, you can call their office directly or call 1-800-82-SHARP (1-800-827-4277), Monday through Friday, 7 am to 7 pm. Some doctors also offer online scheduling for new patients through their doctor profile and the Sharp app.
Yes, in some cases. But you will need to contact your health plan to confirm that your coverage allows it.
Some medical groups offer direct access to certain types of specialists, such as allergists, dermatologists and ophthalmologists. And some health plans, such as PPOs, offer direct access to all specialists.
Always check with your primary care doctor to see if they have a same-day appointment available. If not, there are other options for same-day care:
If you’re experiencing a medical emergency, don’t delay care. Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
We’re here to help you find the doctor who’s right for you. Before you begin your search, consider what’s important to you in a doctor. Read our tips to learn how to choose a doctor at Sharp.
Find a Doctor is a database of highly qualified providers, including doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, who are in good standing with a Sharp HealthCare hospital or affiliated medical group, and who use Sharp facilities. They pay no fees to participate in this service.
Doctors who may not display in Find a Doctor search results include physicians who practice exclusively in a hospital setting, like hospitalists or anesthesiologists. Some providers who qualify may self-select to not participate in the Find a Doctor search results and therefore will not display.
Providers are surveyed once each year and have additional opportunities throughout the year to update their information. The following information is collected from each provider and verified through Sharp HealthCare credentialing offices:
Name, age and gender
Practice dates
Specialties and board certifications (providers will be listed with specialties for which board certification information is available)
Medical education, residency and internships
Office locations
Hospital and medical group affiliations
NPI number
Sharp app participation
Care partners
The following information is self-reported by the provider and not verified by Sharp HealthCare:
Areas of focus
Insurances accepted
Practice features
Provider biographical statements
Care schedule
Languages spoken by the provider or office staff
Whether the provider is accepting new patients
Whether the provider offers same-day/next-day appointments
Whether the provider offers virtual visits
Preferred pronouns
Name pronunciation
Provider biographical statements in particular are presented in the provider’s own words and are only edited for grammar, style and length. Any claims made in the biographical statement have not been verified by Sharp HealthCare and are solely the responsibility of the provider.
Providers' information changes frequently. While Sharp HealthCare does its best to feature the most up-to-date information for every provider, the responsibility of accurate information resides with the providers.
To ensure we are providing our patients with the best care possible, Sharp HealthCare has partnered with Press Ganey, a pioneer in patient experience measurement with over 30 years in the health care industry. The Press Ganey satisfaction survey is utilized by more than 50 percent of hospitals nationwide and more than 1,100 medical practices.
When the Press Ganey Seal of Integrity accompanies the physician star rating and reviews, you can be sure that the information is valid and objective. The measures have been tested in national validation studies to ensure reliability, predictive validity and construct validity. By displaying the Seal of Integrity, an organization proudly acknowledges that the data meet scientifically rigorous standards, and the organization is certified to meet the following requirements:
100 percent validation of patient responses. Responses are from the patients who saw the referenced physician.
Compliance with the Press Ganey Star Rating methodology (zero to five stars).
Assurance of 30 or more survey returns per provider.
Complete posting of positive and negative feedback with the exception of comments that are libelous, slanderous, profane or those that risk patient privacy.
Who receives the survey?
Sharp Rees-Stealy patients receive a paper or electronic survey within a few days after their doctor's office visit.
Sharp Community Medical Group patients receive a paper survey once their claim is processed following a visit with a participating provider.
The survey provides patients with the opportunity to provide feedback about their care experience so that we can continue improving the services we provide at Sharp HealthCare. Approximately 72,000 surveys are returned each year.
What questions does Press Ganey ask?
The Press Ganey medical practice survey asks questions regarding patients' care experience in a medical office setting. Questions cover the following topics: access, moving through visit, nurse/assistant, care provider, personal issues and overall assessment. Patients are asked to rate their experience on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being "very poor" and 5 being "very good."
How are star ratings determined?
Star ratings are derived from patients' feedback to specific questions about their experience with the care provider.
How are reviews managed?
Patients have the opportunity to provide comments regarding their experience with their care provider. Patient identity is not displayed to maintain privacy and confidentiality. We post both negative and positive reviews. We do not post comments that are libelous, profane, inappropriate or compromise the privacy of our patients. Press Ganey is compliant with the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Why are ratings missing for some doctors?
There are several reasons a doctor may not have ratings available:
They are not currently participating in the ratings program
They practice a specialty that does not qualify for the ratings program
They have not reached the minimum 30 reviews needed for ratings to display