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Who is a primary care doctor? 

Primary care physicians or doctors (PCPs) are general medicine practitioners who provide comprehensive and accessible health care. They serve as patients' first point of contact in the healthcare system and manage their overall health. Primary care usually involves a team of physicians and other healthcare professionals focusing on wellness, preventive care, mental health services, acute care, and managing long-term or chronic conditions for people of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds. Unlike other medical specialties, it focuses on diagnosing and treating a broad range of conditions, which may treat disorders of only a specific organ.

Continuity is a crucial characteristic of primary health care, as people generally prefer to consult the same physician for regular health checks and disease prevention. Primary health care is also considered a better alternative to visiting an emergency room since it is a less time-consuming way to treat basic illnesses or injuries. 

Some other duties of primary care physicians include recording medical history, conducting diagnostic tests (such as X-rays, MRIs, and EKGs), offering vaccination/immunization services, tracking health changes over time, and recommending lifestyle changes to manage or prevent serious health issues. While primary care physicians are not surgeons, they can perform skin biopsies, toenail removals, and joint injections. 

To become primary care doctors, aspirants must complete nearly 11 years of education, including an undergraduate degree and medical school, followed by a residency program for three to seven years. They also pursue a fellowship program for two or more years. PCPs may specialize in family medicine, pediatrics, geriatrics, or gynecology and work in various settings, including clinics, long-term care facilities, hospice care, private practices, and inpatient and outpatient hospital settings. 

What are the different specialties of primary care doctors?

After residency, some doctors may specialize in a specific area, such as pediatrics or obstetrics, through a fellowship. Here are some common specialty areas of primary care doctors:

• Family doctors: They treat people of all age groups and train in adult medicine, geriatric medicine, musculoskeletal care, obstetrics, and pediatrics.

• Geriatricians specialize in treating older patients. Due to their advanced training, they are adept at treating balance problems, dementia, and insomnia.

• Internists: These practitioners only treat adults. Like family doctors, they treat several acute and chronic disorders. They receive training in various fields, including endocrinology, geriatrics, neurology, rheumatology, orthopedics, and rehabilitation. 

• Pediatricians: They have expertise in wellness, development, and treatment of disorders that affect babies, children, and teenagers (up to age 21). Many are PCPs for children, while others specialize in pediatric cardiology or neurology.

• Obstetrician-gynecologists (OB-GYN) specialize in women's health and have expertise in childbirth, postpartum conditions, pregnancy, and reproductive health. Some may provide general health services, like an internist or family doctor, while others focus only on female reproductive health.

Internist vs. primary care doctor

People often get confused between a primary care doctor and an internist and unknowingly use these terms interchangeably. Primary care focuses on everyday health, including wellness services like checkups, physicals, and vaccines, as well as treating and managing day-to-day, non-urgent health concerns. In contrast, internal medicine is a medical specialty providing complete and continuing healthcare to adults aged 18 and above.

Primary care doctors are medical practitioners with whom the patient has initial contact before being referred to a specialist. In contrast, internists possess the required specialized training and experience to identify and treat minor and complex illnesses and injuries that most frequently affect adults.

What do primary care doctors treat?

In addition to providing immunizations and routine health exams, primary care doctors can treat minor illnesses or refer you to a medical specialist for a specific disease requiring surgery or advanced treatment. Doctors near you can treat the following conditions:

• Diabetes: Diabetes occurs when the body has excess glucose or blood sugar. When the pancreas cannot produce the insulin required to turn glucose into energy, it builds up in the bloodstream. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes and happens when the body's cells become resistant to insulin. PCPs can treat and manage diabetes, make patient-specific diabetic care plans, and keep track of diabetes-associated diseases through routine physicals and checkups. 

• High Blood Pressure (BP): High blood pressure (BP) or hypertension occurs when blood pressure exerted on the arteries' walls is too high (above 130/80 mm Hg). Normal BP is usually at or below 120/80 mm Hg. Hypertension generally has no symptoms, making it a silent killer. It can also increase the risk of life-threatening heart diseases. Early detection through a routine health checkup is the only way to learn if someone has high blood pressure. People over 40 years old are at a higher risk of hypertension.

• Asthma: Asthma is a lung illness where the airways swell up, narrow down, and produce excess mucus. It causes wheezing, shortness of breath, chest pain, and trouble sleeping. PCPs can diagnose and treat asthma by conducting lung function tests and prescribing long-term or quick-relief medications, depending on the condition's severity. You can also create an asthma action plan with your PCP that determines when you should take your medicines and increase or decrease your dosage. A PCP may also recommend you to an allergist or immunologist if necessary.

Importance of primary care doctors in healthcare

Most people overestimate their health status and don't feel the need to see primary care doctors for routine appointments. It often results in emergency hospital visits and expensive emergency treatments for non-emergency health problems. Here are some reasons that elucidate the role and importance of primary care doctors in our healthcare:

• Expert primary care: Having someone we can trust with our health issues and complications, someone we can depend on for continuity of care, and someone to guide us on the best practices for overall well-being is extremely valuable. Primary care doctors are certified medical doctors with years of expertise in providing definitive primary care to people. From your first visit to full recovery, a qualified primary care doctor will work with you at every step to ensure you receive the best medical care and regain your optimum quality of life.

• One-stop solution: Be it a common cold or significant illness, injuries, and vaccinations, a board-certified primary care doctor is the perfect solution for all your health issues. They help diffuse your nervousness and anxiety about healthcare, provide comfort, diagnose your health condition, and offer appropriate treatment for holistic recovery. So, when in doubt about whom to consult for your health issues, visit a qualified primary care doctor near you.

• Detect health issues early: We only consider seeing a doctor when we are severely ill, but most serious illnesses usually show specific symptoms in their early stages. Primary care doctors generally conduct detailed physical examinations during periodic health checkups. These checkups help the doctor detect and treat underlying health issues early, thus preventing serious health complications. Most severe illnesses can be successfully cured when detected early. 

• Manage chronic health conditions: Chronic ailments, including diabetes, high blood pressure, or arthritis, require continuous long-term care to manage the symptoms, control their severity, and ensure a good quality of life. Primary care doctors schedule routine health checks, conduct screenings, check medications for contraindications, and monitor your chronic conditions. They even analyze the efficacy of the current treatment plan and suggest new medications or modifications to the treatment if required to optimize health and recovery.

What to expect during your first appointment?

The first time you visit a primary care doctor near you, the focus will be on providing information that helps them understand your medical history and healthcare needs. The doctor will review your records, medications, and your personal and family medical history. Be prepared to answer questions regarding allergies, vaccinations, past surgeries, and your current lifestyle, including activity levels and drug or alcohol use. Being transparent with the doctor is beneficial for establishing an appropriate treatment plan that will work best for you. 

The doctor may examine and review your overall health and well-being, including the following components:

• Height and weight measurements: The doctor will calculate your BMI (Body Mass Index) to screen you for being underweight or overweight. Unhealthy body weight can cause health conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Consistently monitoring these measurements can also help the doctor notice sudden changes in your health. 

• Heart rate: While a regular resting heart rate may vary from person to person, an adult's normal heart rate would be around 60 to 100 beats per minute. 

• Blood pressure: Along with checking your blood pressure, the doctor may also enquire about your eating habits and activity level, which can contribute to it. 

• Visual exam: Your doctor may conduct a visual exam, checking your eyes, chest, abdomen, hands, and wrists to check for any signs of potential health issues. 

• Blood tests: Your doctor can order specific tests, such as diabetes or urine tests, to help them check for irregularities. 

Your primary care doctor will assess your vaccination record to see if you are due for or may benefit from a vaccine. The doctor will also review your medications and increase or decrease your doses if necessary. 

During follow-up visits, the doctor focuses on specific health goals, such as treating an illness or improving wellness. If you have any questions, you must let your doctor know so that they can help clarify your doubts. If you need to remember some information after the appointment, contact your doctor, and they will help you with your concerns. 

How to find a primary care doctor in Tinley Park, IL?

Visiting a primary care doctor for a routine health checkup can help detect various health problems, including potentially life-threatening diseases. With Zocdoc, you can avoid waiting long hours at the clinic or hospital and find some of the best primary care doctors in Tinley Park, Illinois.

Enter your condition or symptoms, location, and preferred appointment date to receive a list of top-rated physicians matching your criteria. You can filter the displayed search results by gender, hospital affiliation, languages they speak, and whether they treat children. To check whether a provider accepts your insurance, you can include your insurance carrier in your search and find in-network providers. 

If you can't find your medical insurance plan on Zocdoc, upload a photo of your insurance card. Zocdoc will automatically scan the image and display the most suitable plan for you. This feature isn't available for dental or vision insurance cards. If you face any issues while uploading the image, don't hesitate to contact Zocdoc's service team for assistance. Additionally, you can check out Zocdoc's patient help center for answers to any further insurance-related queries.

Zocdoc believes in transparency and provides each healthcare professional's medical background, including their clinical training, licenses, certifications, awards, and accreditations, to help you choose. Further, you can also access honest and verified patient reviews and ratings. Once you have decided on the best primary care doctor near you, you can instantly book an online or in-person appointment based on your convenience. All bookings on Zocdoc are easy, free, and secure! 

Primary care statistics for Illinois

Some primary care specialties include family medicine, general internal medicine, and pediatrics. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data states that, as of May 2021, Illinois employed nearly 910 general internal medicine physicians and over 2,600 family medicine physicians. 

As per an Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) 2018 report, over 36,240 active physicians practice in Illinois. Of these, nearly 12,685 are primary care physicians. Over 4000 primary care physicians specialize in family medicine, almost 5,261 practice internal medicine, and 2,352 specialize in pediatrics. 

As per a 2021 report by the American Diabetes Association (ADA), nearly 10% of the Illinois adult population, i.e., roughly 993,082 people, were diagnosed with diabetes. Each year, there are over 88,000 new diabetic cases in the state. Additionally, almost 296,000 adults in Illinois were unaware of their diabetes, and over 3.3 million, i.e., 34% of the adult population in Illinois, were prediabetic. Diagnosed diabetes in Illinois costs approximately $12 billion in direct medical expenses yearly. Those with diabetes also have medical expenses 2.3 times higher than others. 

Sources

American Academy of Family Physicians

Healthline[1]

Healthline[2]

WebMD

Mayo Clinic[1]

Mayo Clinic[2]

Mayo Clinic[3]

Mayo Clinic[4]

UMMC Health Care

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics[1]

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics[2]

Association of American Medical Colleges

American Diabetes Association

Medical Associates of Northwest Arkansas

Peace Health

Brevard Health Alliance

Health Partners

Physicians Alliance of Connecticut

familydoctor.org

The content herein is provided for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Medical information changes constantly, and therefore the content on this website should not be assumed to be current, complete or exhaustive. Always seek the advice of your doctor before starting or changing treatment. If you think you may have a medical emergency, please call your doctor or 9-1-1 immediately.