Patients often think of a doctor’s job as solely providing acute intervention, where patients go with their problems, and doctors fix them. However, a doctor’s responsibility extends far beyond just solving problems. Doctors must prevent these problems from happening. The practice of Bastrop preventative health could save lives, decrease healthcare costs and decrease health disparities between communities.
What does it mean to practice preventative medicine?
Preventive medicine is the idea that there are things that doctors can do clinically to help people who are feeling well today to continue to feel well into the future. This field is different from identifying symptoms and treating diseases that people already have. Preventative medicine is thinking about what care providers can do today to help people who do not have signs or symptoms of illness and make sure that they continue to be that way.
There are some current clinical and public health interventions that doctors are involved in to prevent chronic disease. For example, cardiovascular disease: There is an increasing need to understand what causes cardiovascular disease in older patients.
Scientists are beginning to appreciate the importance of preventative care in patients in their twenties. This self-care might prevent them from developing cardiovascular disease in their older years, subsequently decreasing the risk of death. For this reason, a lot of research should go towards how to identify who needs treatment for elevations in blood pressure? How early should doctors be treating elevations in blood pressure? How fast should care providers be thinking about lipid treatments or at risk of elevated cholesterol contributing to disease?
Because doctors focus on prevention earlier in their patient’s life, it also means that they are trying to understand the types of contextual things that put people at risk. These factors include what kinds of things in the environment, where people live, work, and play put them at risk for an earlier disease.
What are the significant barriers or threats to the complete implementation of preventative medicine?
Preventive medicine is complex in general or primary care practice because of competing demands. So if a patient is feeling poorly, that will take priority. If you need treatment for a specific chronic condition, that will take precedence.
Thinking about those things that doctors can do with a patient feeling well that might prevent them from being sick in the future is sometimes harder to prioritize. Physicians are busy, especially in general medical practices and primary care practices. Eliminating the barrier of time would help improve preventative medicine.
What are some simple everyday things that physicians and medical students can do to implement preventive medicine in their daily practice?
The best way to enhance preventative care is for doctors and patients to give the practice the seriousness it deserves. Therefore, doctors should schedule more time towards educating patients on the importance of healthy habits that can prevent disease development. Schedule an appointment with Pompeyo C Chavez, MD, to learn about how you can prevent specific diseases and maintain your quality of life.
