What Are the Important Functions Performed by Primary Care Physicians?

Primary care physicians are trained to deliver general care to individuals, which is why primary care physicians are commonly referred to as family doctors. These professionals offer the first echelon of medical assistance to patients. Whenever you have any non-serious or common illness such as cough, cold, fever, or a rash, primary care physicians help in receiving proper care. It is also usual for primary care physicians to treat and take care of the entire family, from elders to children. The high degree of involvement allows these doctors to detect several medical issues at an early stage.

This article will briefly discuss the functions of a primary care physician.

Functions of Primary Care Physicians

1. Health Tracking

A primary care physician in Orange County always plans for your health. They properly track your health through regular tests and diagnosis. For instance, they suggest appropriate vaccinations for children and suitable medical examinations for the elderly.

They not only treat minor issues like fever, cold, and cough but also detect when there is another underlying issue which is giving rise to fever, cold, and cough.

As patients like to visit a specialist in case of any health issue such as diabetes and thyroid, your primary care physician can direct you to the right specialist. Due to their network, knowledge, and profession, they are able to deliver optimum advice to patients.

2. Early Detection

Primary care physicians are specially trained to find red flags. When a patient is sick such as having a fever or cough, the physician can figure out the hidden signs. This is possible because of the regular care offered by the physician.

As a result, this ability to find out hidden signs and red flags allows Orange County primary care physicians to detect serious health problems early. For instance, it leads to the early detection of health issues like diabetes, cervical, or thyroid.

3. Proper Follow-Up

Since the primary care physician knows the family, it is easier to follow up. They can understand the progress of the patient on multiple illnesses.

Some ways in which primary care physicians follow up:

Ensuring compliance with medication, schedule, and medical routine.
Progress and treatment of chronic illnesses.
Judging the parameters of prevailing health alerts such as sugar on borderline.
Ensuring the correct dosage according to the current side effects.

4. Correct Advice

Many experts believe that primary care physicians can help you find the right specialist according to your needs. If any patient decides to visit a specialist without guidance from the physician, it is highly likely to go wrong. You can visit a specialist not suitable for your requirements.

Consider the following scenario to understand the same:

A patient had consistent, recurring pains on the left side of the chest. Instead of talking to the primary care physician, the patient visited a cardiologist in Orange County and took a series of heart tests. The tests didn’t show any prominent results and no optimal conclusion was drawn. Now, what should the patient do? Should he visit another cardiologist? Or should he consult another specialist?

The answer can’t be determined. The primary care physician can be the right doctor to direct towards a specialist given their experience and history of working with the patient.

Different Types of Primary Care Physicians

While most of the primary care physicians offer general medicine and care to the patients, there are some bifurcations. Below are the types of physicians:

Family physicians treat every type of patients, including children, the elderly, as well as teenagers. In simple words, they take care of your whole family.
Pediatricians treat children and take care of the general needs of children. These doctors generally don’t treat patients who are above the age of 18.
Obstetricians look after the primary needs of girls and women in Orange County. They treat women and girls of all ages, teenagers, adults, and elders.

How Can You Find the Right One?

Finding the right primary care physician is imperative. Here are a few tips that can help you look for the right physician:

Assess your needs before finding the physician. For instance, if you have health insurance of the family, you should look for a doctor who accepts family insurance.
Look for a physician near to your home. Patients need to visit the doctor multiple times and if the distance is more, it can be inconvenient to do so.
If your family has one or more children, look for a physician with friendly helping staff.
Lastly, check the online reviews of the physician to clearly understand the services.

5. Conclusion

A primary care physician in Orange County is important for your family’s health. Hence, spend some time reading about the functions performed by the physician to understand the service. Once you know what you need, research thoroughly to find the best physician for your family.