I really haven't been to the doctors except for acne when i was young, but since i'm in the field of medicine, i thought i would give you a couple of pointers.

first, let's suppose that you need to see a physician because you have some abdominal pain, lets also assume that the pain is manageable, then you would check in with your insurance company. based on where you live, after you tell them what's wrong with you or what kind of doctor you'd like to see, they will give you a list of "in-network" doctors in your areas which means that the cost which incurred when you see these doctors should be covered under your plan and you don't have to pay much out of the pocket fees yourself except the co-payment to see that doctor, which usually runs from 10-20 dollars. then after you get the name and the phone number from the insurance company, you can call the doctor and made an appointment to see him/her. If you have a specific doctor you'd like to see, call the insurance company and find out if he/she's on their list, if yes, you are by all means covered, but if he/she's not, then he/she's considered as an "out-of-network" doctor, usually you would have to pay extra to see them (eg. 100 dollars), and the insurance would only cover 50% of the cost. So naturally, it is for your best interest to see someone on the list already.

when you show up at the clinic, bring all the necessary documents such as your proof of insurance, your drivers license or other proof of ID, and your appointment sheet, if available.

depends on your specific cases, the doctor, after examining you, may need a few labs from you, these generally are the routine CBCs, basic metabolic panel, CT/MRI, Chest Xray, and many others. these labs should also be paid by your insurance, PENDING on the fact that the place you do it at is covered by the insurance company, so call them up to confirm whether they do cover for your lab costs.

The doctor may prescribe the medication for you and bring you back in 6 weeks to 3 months, sometimes a year, prior to leaving the clinic, make sure you check with the nurse regarding the next appointment date and time. Usually, the clinics/doctors' assistant will fill out the forms for your insurance claim, but sometimes you do it yourself, so ask them about that too.

While most of the medication should be covered by your insurance plan (depending on the types of plans you have), but you should check with your insurance agency whether they would pay for the particular medicine you are prescribed by the doctor, if they say yes, go ahead and fill it at a local pharmacy, but if not, you should ask your doctor for another med that are covered under your plan. you see, there are alot of namebrand drugs that's the same formulary as the generic drugs, but costs much more, but they all work the same.

when you fill your prescription at a drug store, some of the pharmacy will fill the claim and send it in automatically, so you only have to pay a co-pay, which usually runs from 10-20 for generic(cheaper) drugs, and 20-40 for name-brand drugs. but some insurance do require you to pay the full prices of the drugs, and then you need to file a claim to the insurance company in order to get your money back, always check in with your particular insurance company for more information.

i didn't realize that most of my explanations were on the insurance part, but i do think that's the biggest thing you need to watch out for, let me know if you have questions for a specific area during doctor-patient visit.