Many people do not realize the importance of having a family healthcare provider. If you or one of your family members gets sick, can’t you just head to the nearest walk-in clinic for treatment? While this may solve your immediate problem, having a family provider is important for preventing future sickness. This can end up saving you time, money, and possibly serious health issues!
Even with insurance, there are out-of-pocket expenses that can be hard to pay in these tough economic times. People often turn to the Internet for medical advice instead of seeing a family provider.
By relying on non-professional Internet advice, many people run the risk of incorrectly diagnosing a health condition. An incorrect diagnosis or failure to see the issue at all can cause huge medical issue that could end up costing you a lot more money than if you just checked with your family provider in the first place. By checking in with a family provider, you receive professional diagnoses that stem from years of training and experience.
If, instead of visiting your primary care doctor or provider right when a health issue is perceived, you decide to wait, you may end up having to go to the emergency room. Visiting the emergency room when someone in the family is sick is expensive and unnecessary. Family medicine providers will do their best to work a patient into their schedule even without an appointment.
When you know your family provider, there’s a level of comfort you don’t have with a new provider. Patients may be more open about sharing symptoms.
Additionally, your family provider knows your medical history and has your records on hand for reference. This helps with diagnosis. Having a relationship with your family provider lowers anxiety for the patient and makes the experience of seeing your provider less stressful for everyone involved. A family provider can be of immense value for your health and your family’s health.