You may feel healthy and fit, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need medical care. As you grow, several changes take place in your body, which may lead to unnoticeable health deterioration. Some of these minor health challenges can only be detected during medical checkups, explaining the need to have a primary care doctor.
Here are the top five reasons that you should ensure you have a primary care physician you can rely on and see regularly.
1. Helps You Stay Healthy
As already mentioned, some health issues come with aging. A direct primary care doctor will monitor your health from time to time and take immediate action whenever they notice anything out of the ordinary. This will ensure you are always healthy through preventive care.
Through regular tests, conditions can be detected earlier and addressed before they develop into more serious situations. Primary care doctors offer services like annual checkups for children and adults, and cancer screening (prostate, cervical, breast, cancer, etc.). They also help by managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and TB, among others.
2. Lowers the Cost of Healthcare
Preventive healthcare is excellent at reducing your medical costs. Most preventative healthcare services are already covered by your health insurance without a copay. This means you’ll not pay anything extra for these services. A primary care doctor offers routine immunizations, screenings, and physicals, which will help you avoid costly prescriptions later on.
For instance, depending on your risk factors and overall health, your doctor may recommend diabetic screening once you reach the age of 40. Diabetes is very common in older people. It’s a condition in which the levels of sugar in the blood are excessively high and may cause damage to your organs and blood vessels. The doctor can detect diabetes earlier and offer the care you need before your condition gets worse.
3. Saves Time
Working with a primary care medical practitioner will save you time because they can address many medical needs in one visit. Your healthcare provider can provide immunizations, screening, checkups, and prescriptions all in one visit. This means you’ll not have to keep moving from one medical facility to the next.
During your visits, feel free to ask any questions you have concerning your health. Your primary care doctor is someone who knows your medical history and will be able to deal with your concerns within the shortest time possible. Remember, every time you visit your care provider, you are not going to start from zero. You will be going to someone who already knows what you need and has your records.
4. Reliable Health Advisor and Advocate
Your primary healthcare provider is more than just your doctor; he or she is also your best health advisor and advocate. As you work together, you’ll create a strong bond that’s helpful in many ways. Your primary care doctor is someone who understands all medical issues, meaning they are better placed to offer you the best medical advice and even help you develop healthy routines.
5. Helps to Guide You to the Right Expert
The medical field is very broad and no single doctor can handle all your medical problems. In a case where you need specialized treatment, your primary care doctor can guide you to the best professional for the service.
Your primary care provider may also coordinate with other specialists to ensure you get the best holistic treatment.
Keep Your Healthcare on the Right Track with Primary Care
If you have never thought about working with a primary care doctor, you now have all the reasons to do so. If you’ve only been seeing specialists on a per-issue basis, it’s time for a more holistic approach.