Nothing feels worse than falling ill in paradise—except, perhaps, thumbing through 65 pages in the local phone book looking for a doctor. Now you’re sick and confused. Who are all of these physicians, and which one is right for you?

Whether it’s to care for your child, mend your trick knee, or for something more serious, choosing a doctor is never easy. Before you resort to tossing a dart at the Yellow Pages or asking around the clubhouse, we’ve taken some of the mystery and anxiety out of the process with Gulfshore Life’s annual list of the Gulfshore’s Top Doctors. In this issue, we’ll look at the practices of a few of the region’s best physicians through the eyes of some of their patients, including these: a 58-year-old yoga and kickboxing enthusiast getting back in the ring with her resurfaced hip; a self-professed finicky mom who looked doubly hard for a pediatrician—and found one just in time to deliver her twins; a Naples man whose routine exam turned into an early diagnosis of cancer; and an Estero senior who calls the doctor who saved his life several times his "own personal angel."

Browse the Gulfshore's Top Doctors
Allergy & Immunology	Obstetrics & Gynecology
Cardiovascular Disease	Ophthalmology
Colon & Rectal Surgery	Orthopaedic Surgery
Dermatology	Otolaryngology
Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism	Pediatrics
Family Medicine	Hand Surgery
Gastroenterology	Plastic Surgery
Gynecologic Oncology	Psychiatry
Infectious Disease	Pulmonary Disease
Internal Medicine	Rheumatology
Medical Oncology	Surgery
Nephrology	Thoracic Surgery
Neurological Surgery	Urology
Neurology	Vascular Radiology
To search the whole list click here.

The doctors on our list have passed a rigorous set of criteria for inclusion. Once again, Gulfshore Life has partnered with research firm Castle Connolly Medical in New York to publish the list of Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties’ top physicians. Castle Connolly conducts a national survey of physicians and the medical leadership of leading hospitals. After the votes are tallied, Castle Connolly ensures the physicians meet the company’s criteria—including a board certification requirement, a minimum number of years of unsupervised experience in their specialties and a clean disciplinary record.

"Gulfshore Life’s readers are fortunate to be in a region of the country with many excellent doctors and hospitals, but many people still have difficulty in selecting a physician," says William Liss-Levinson, vice president and chief strategy & operations officer for Castle Connolly. "And the widespread advertising and promotion that has consumed the healthcare world can be overwhelming at times for the average consumer. Having a trusted and independent source of information to help you find the right doctor for you is one important way to be an informed and empowered consumer for your health."

Our 2007 results include 94 physicians in 29 specialties, a slight increase from the 83 doctors in 25 fields we covered last year. Making use of such information and proactively choosing both doctors and healthcare facilities is part of a new paradigm in American medicine, according to Liss-Levinson.

"The new buzz phrases in healthcare—consumer-driven or consumer-directed—are only as effective as the consumer’s ability to truly direct his or her healthcare choices," Liss-Levinson says. "For most of us, that begins with the confidence that we have selected the right physician for our health needs. Castle Connolly can be a trusted resource in this process."

The Gulfshore Life Top Doctors list is a great resource for selecting a physician in Southwest Florida, but it’s by no means the only one. For additional data on doctors and their specialties, patients can consult county medical societies, local hospitals and state and federal Web sites such as the National Institutes of Health (www.nih.gov) or the Florida Department of Health (www.doh.state.fl.us).