By Jerri Perry


Family medicine is a medical specialty that offers comprehensive and continuing healthcare for individuals and families. It integrates the clinical, biological and behavioral sciences. A family practice doctor or general practitioner cares for people of all ages, both sexes and every kind of disease that people usually seek treatment for.

You may seek the help of a primary care physician regardless of whether you are suffering from an acute illness or a chronic medical problem. You can enjoy good health for many years if you visit this professional on a regular basis. General practitioners play an essential role in society and they offer their services in any inhabited area. They receive training that enables them offer comprehensive healthcare services.

Besides diagnosing and treating diseases, general practitioners also offer preventative care that includes routine checkups, screening tests, immunization, health risk assessments and counseling on how to live healthily. They also coordinate care that other subspecialists provide. Many of these doctors also offer prenatal and post natal care and deliver babies. They help families save time by making it unnecessary for each member of a family to consult with a different physician.

Parents with multiple children find it easy to keep track of appointments if they work with the same physician. Getting healthcare services from the same provider is also much easier. After seeing the same physician for a long time, patients feel comfortable with him or her and the anxiety of office visits diminishes. General practitioners keep medical records of their patients and they can therefore know if a particular illness runs in a family.

Once you visit primary care practitioners, they will determine the health problems you have immediately and treat them effectively. You can visit them in hospitals, offices and they can also come to your home. These professionals pursue certifications and renew their licenses regularly. This ensures that their patients benefit from the latest medical breakthroughs.

As you search for a primary care doctor, make sure that you choose one who is Board Certified. This means that the physician meets the education, experience and knowledge standards that are required for doctors to offer high quality care in a particular medical specialty. Primary care physicians who are Board Certified are also committed to advancing their knowledge and this enables them to provide their patients with high quality care.

When selecting a primary care doctor, you should also consider if the professional can easily be reached. Find out if the working hours of the professional are convenient for you and if his or her medical staff provides excellent customer service. It is also wise to consider if the physician orders tests to be performed in order to accurately diagnose a problem and whether his or her approach to treatment is conservative or aggressive.

It is also important for patients to think about the reputation that a family practice doctor has before deciding to use his or her services. They can research about this information from associations of physician assistants, nursing associations and other medical associations. Patients can also ask their friends, relatives and other healthcare professionals like pharmacists and dentists to provide them with recommendations about good primary care physicians in their area.




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