Comprehensive care for every stage of life
By Tessa Reinke, MD, Bonner General Family Practice
Family medicine, primary care, internal medicine, pediatrics…. We hear about all these medical specialty designations but often are unsure what they mean or what services they provide.
Primary care provides most of the healthcare people need over their lifetime and serves as the entry point into the healthcare system. It is the first, and often the only stop required to address most health needs. Primary care should serve as the focal point of the system, with all health information flowing back into primary care from hospitalizations and specialty offices, so the primary care provider can help you, the patient, determine the best course of action for your health. Think of a primary care provider as the quarterback, someone who sees the whole field and is best positioned to call the play.
Family medicine physicians, internal medicine physicians, and general pediatric physicians, along with their teams, provide most of the primary care. In contrast to other parts of the healthcare system, primary care providers will see a patient with just symptoms but no diagnosis. They will investigate and treat those symptoms without reference to a specific organ type or disease process. For example, if a patient comes to the clinic with upper belly pain, a primary care physician will consider if the pain comes from the heart, the stomach or the muscles, and will work to investigate and treat any of these possibilities. Second, primary care teams manage ongoing care needs alongside their patients, including chronic disease management and preventative care, they help patients know when important services like labs, imaging or vaccinations should be performed. Primary care is person-centered rather than disease-centered. It is continuous, comprehensive, and accessible. You never need a referral to see your primary care physician or provider, and their care is focused on all of you, not just your heart, kidneys, or ankle.
Family medicine is distinctive within primary care. Family medicine physicians provide care for all ages and life stages, from birth through death. As a family physician, I have delivered a baby, helped a patient manage their diabetes in mid-life, and held the hand of another patient in hospice care, all in one day. Physicians who have chosen to specialize in family medicine have undergone specific training to provide this type of continuous and comprehensive medical care. In addition, family physicians and providers are often physically situated in the communities they serve. They know their patients, their families, and their community, allowing them to best organize "the appropriate use of consultants, health services, and community resources, leading to better health, better care, and lower costs" (AAFP, 1977). Family medicine physicians have a window into the structural and social drivers of health and well-being that influence an individual's ability to access, afford, and engage in care and wellness. This allows them to be their patients' most effective healthcare advocates and helps determine what the right care is in the right place at the right time.
Dr. Reinke practices full-spectrum medicine, caring for newborns to those at the end of life. She has special interests in public health, women's health, pediatrics, and preventive care.
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