Get The Care You Need: Why You Need Your Own Primary Care Physician
If you haven't chosen a primary care physician, now's the time to do that. Many people forego having their own primary care physician. In fact, urgent care centers are often chosen instead. While urgent care centers do provide access to immediate medical care, they can't replace the care you receive from a primary care physician. Here are just four of the reasons why you need to choose a primary care physician.
Preventative Care
If you're worried about maintaining your health, you need access to preventative care. Unfortunately, you can't get that from an urgent care center. For complete access to preventative care, you need your own physician. Throughout your life, you will likely need to undergo diagnostic tests to track specific health concerns. Some of those tests include glucose testing, breast or prostate exams, and colonoscopies. A primary care physician will ensure that you receive the necessary diagnostic tests for your age.
Personal Knowledge
When it comes to ensuring your own good health, you need a doctor who knows you. Urgent care centers aren't designed to provide the one-on-one medical relationship you need with a physician. For that, you need to have your own primary care physician. Because primary care physicians see you for all your medical needs, they have the ability to track your health. As a result, they're able to catch minor changes that could affect your life.
Access to Specialists
If you experience health problems, you may need to see a specialist. Unfortunately, most specialists require a referral from the primary care physician. Those referrals can be difficult to get when you receive all your medical care through an urgent care center. To make sure you have access to the specialists you may need, it's important that you have a primary care physician. Not only will your primary care physician make sure you get the referrals you need, but they'll also make sure you see the right specialists for your specific health concern.
Safer Environment
Finally, during the age of COVID-19, you want to reduce your risk of exposure as much as possible. That's difficult to do when you visit an urgent care center. Most people visit urgent care centers when they're sick. If you're going in for a well-person exam, you could be exposed to the virus. Primary care physicians are taking steps to keep their waiting rooms clean and sanitary. That means your risk of exposure is reduced when you schedule an appointment with your primary care physician.
To learn more, contact a doctor.