Selecting a Primary Care Physician is a very important step in taking proactive measures regarding your quality of life.

Primary Care Providers:

• Are at the forefront of your care. While specialists are consulted by the PCP to manage one specific area of care, your PCP is the overseer of your total care.
• Establish a long-term relationship with you. Your PCP learns your health history and utilizes that information to provide preventative and interventional care. 
• Serve as an educational resource. Knowledge is power. Your PCP can help you understand various disease states and methods that you can take to empower you to be your best advocate in improving your quality of life.

Why Are There A Lot of Individuals/Families Without A PCP?

It’s not considered to be a priority. Here are a few reasons why:

• Lack of time…can’t fit it into my schedule
• I feel fine
• I’ll do it after I get insurance
• I’d rather not know if something is wrong

Regarding time…

You only have one body…take care of it. Just as we take time to take our vehicles in for body and engine maintenance to extend their life span, we should have as much concern for our physical bodies and internal engines to enhance and increase our life span.

Regarding feeling fine…

GREAT!  We want you to stay that way. Regular visits to your PCP can assist in that effort. This would enable proactive and preventive measures to help improve and/or maintain a great quality of life.

Regarding getting insurance…

In addition to public health clinics, and sliding scale plans, many pharmaceutical companies have a Patient Assistant Program.

Regarding not wanting to know…

Remember, knowledge is power. Early detection can provide good outcomes.  Utilizing the proper methods and procedures, your PCP can help intervene and turn a potentially negative outcome into a positive one. Also, if necessary, your PCP has the means to organize his ‘team’---consisting of the proper specialists in addition to him/herself---to enable the specialized care that may be required.

Making sure that you and your family have a PCP is the responsible thing to do.

Health Hint…
Get a primary care provider before the illness gets you. This decision is too important to be rushed.

NOTE: Before your first visit, call your insurance to select/change your PCP!