Primary care is the most common type of medical care. However, this does not mean primary care is ordinary or unimportant. In fact, primary care physicians and their staff are the first and most easily accessed entrance into the health care system. Primary care providers (PCPs)– doctors, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners – deliver a wide range of medical services and coordinate specialty care outside their practices as patient needs arise. Here is a rundown of the kinds of services available through primary care.
Wellness Examinations
The annual wellness check-up sets a baseline for continuing primary care. With this head-to-toe assessment, the PCP tracks a number of health indicators including:
- Height
- Weight
- Blood pressure
- Heart rate
- Respirations
- Vision and hearing
- Mental health and acuity
- Reflexes
- Muscular strength
- Balance
- Coordination
Additionally, patients and healthcare providers discuss lifestyle habits regarding nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress, alcohol, and tobacco. Together, they make a plan to address health needs–both current and future ones. The primary care physician considers how family history (heredity) impacts health, too.
While there can be some overlap in primary care services, in general, primary care physicians concentrate on care for families, children, or the senior population (geriatrics). They deliver acute and chronic health care services to all members of entire families, neighborhoods, and communities, including infants, children, teens, young adults, adults, and seniors. To great patient benefit, these primary care physicians can spot trends in family health related to:
- Family dynamics
- Genetics
- Socioeconomic status and living environments
- Religion and personal philosophies
Preventive Medical Care
The best health care involves much more than curing a bout of pneumonia with antibiotics or suturing a laceration. Primary care also involves preventive care based on a number of factors unique to every patient. Preventive care includes:
- Vaccinations against the flu, COVID-19 illness, pneumonia, shingles, and numerous childhood communicable diseases, such as mumps, measles, and rubella
- Cancer screenings as age appropriate–mammograms for women and prostate cancer testing for men beginning at age 40 and colonoscopies for colorectal cancer for all adults at 45
- Monitoring of blood glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure as major indicators of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic disorders related to the thyroid
- Skin cancer checks for rashes and changes in moles and other skin spots
- Hearing and vision checks
- Bone density scans for osteoporosis and degenerative bone conditions
- Stroke risk analysis (carotid auscultation and ultrasound evaluation)
- Pulmonary function tests, spirometry, and chest X-rays for patients with asthma, COPD, and other respiratory conditions
- Checks regarding ambulation, driving, and safety within the home environment
Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Diseases and Injuries
Patients come to the primary care setting when they are sick or injured. Primary care providers order lab work, such as urinalysis for UTIs, strep tests, and STD testing.
Perhaps one person or an entire family has come down with the flu or other communicable illness. The primary care team can deliver medicine and other curative strategies to promote wellness within the home.
Other treatments PCPs provide include:
- Removes skin staples and sutures
- Treats minor burns and abrasions
- Stabilizes simple strains, joint dislocations, and sprains and gives pain relief injections for arthritis, tendonitis, and other minor orthopedic conditions
- Administers nebulizer breathing treatments
- Administers EKG, pulse oximetry, and other cardiac and respiratory tests
- Stabilizes high and low blood glucose levels
Management of Chronic Conditions
This can include asthma, diabetes, hypertension, skin conditions (acne, eczema, rosacea, and psoriasis as examples), mental health issues (such as anxiety and depression), and more. Management may involve tracking patient symptoms, adjusting medications, and referring for and coordinating assessment and treatments from medical specialists, such as urologists, cardiologists, oncologists, mental health specialists, and many others.
Primary care physicians know their patients well, and so, they are the best resource for creating a long-term plan of care for both immediate and future needs. PCPs understand the progression of diseases and conditions and can make good predictions on how individual patients will respond to treatments, therapies, and surgeries.
A Relationship of Cooperation and Trust
The effectiveness of primary care depends on how well the patient and healthcare provider cooperate and communicate with each other. Patients must be open and honest about their concerns, so doctors correctly diagnose their conditions and develop care that produces the best therapeutic outcomes–both immediate and long-term. The best PCPs ensure that care is patient-centered and that people receive the education they deserve to make good decisions about their health needs going forward.
A Medical Home
Primary care physicians provide a medical home for their patients. They maintain and distribute electronic medical records (the paperless medical chart). Also, they provide access to services such as palliative care (symptom management for serious illness and disability) and hospice (end-of-life) care, rehabilitation, long-term skilled nursing care, and other special services outside of primary care. Your doctor will help you attain your best level of wellness and independence when you are recovering from serious injury and complex surgery and even dealing with life-limiting, terminal illnesses, such as cancer.
In short, primary care is the first, best, and most reliable source of health care services, education, and advocacy that much of the American population needs throughout their lifespan. It’s the bedrock of wellness for children, teens, adults, and seniors.
Exceptional Primary Care in Queens, NY
At EMU Health in Glendale, Queens, our team of primary care providers makes sure each patient has access to a wide range of primary and specialty care services. From radiology to women’s health services to cardiology, orthopedics, urology, and everything in between, we treat our patients–no matter their age or walk of life–with the compassion and skill they deserve. And, we do it right in their own neighborhood.
So, to learn more about what primary care can do for you and your entire family, call us to set up an in-office consultation at EMU Health: (718) 850-4368, or you may request an appointment online. World-class care is at your fingertips!