Primary Care Specialist

What is primary care?

Your primary care provider is your main point for health management, and your provider’s goal is to ensure that you get the right care. To keep you as healthy as possible, your primary care provider becomes familiar with your medical history and health and uses that information to guide your care.

Disease prevention is the cornerstone of staying healthy. Your primary care provider is responsible for screening you for various health conditions, depending on your age, family history, and lifestyle risk factors. Examples of conditions you may be screened for include diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity.

Managing existing conditions is another important role of your primary care team. They can help you slow the progression of certain conditions and maybe even prevent future complications. In some instances, the proper management can help reverse chronic conditions.

What are the benefits of having a primary care provider?

Simply put, having a primary provider to consistently track and manage your care keeps you healthier. You’ll reap the following benefits from having a primary care provider:

Disease prevention:

Your primary care provider tracks your health over time when you attend regular visits and screens you for factors that put you at risk for a disease. Screenings enable your primary care provider to identify behaviors that contribute to disease development and make recommendations for changes that will keep you healthy.

Chronic disease management:

Millions of Americans are learning to live well with chronic disease. Whether you have Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, having one provider help manage your condition helps prevent complications and improves your quality of life.

Consistent care:

Having one medical team manage your health not only improves your care, it reduces the risk of problems, such as errors in diagnosis. Your primary care provider is trained to spot potential problems early on and provide referrals to the right specialists, if needed, to ensure that your medical needs are met.

When should I see a primary care provider?

As a new patient, you’ll see your primary provider get established. This involves meeting your provider, giving a detailed health history, and undergoing a physical exam. If needed, your provider may order tests or refer you to a specialist to help manage your care. You should also see your provider for regular checkups and whenever you have acute health issues, such as back pain or a sore throat.