Faith Regional Health Services | living WELL | Fall 2018

4 FAITH REGIONAL HEALTH SERVICES A GOOD HEALTH MUST-HAVE ONE OF THE BEST THINGS you can do for your health is to have an ongoing relationship with a primary care provider, experts say. In fact, people who see a primary care provider regularly have better health outcomes, lower death rates and lower total costs for health care than people who don’t routinely see a doctor, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians. A primary care provider is the lead person on your health care team. He or she helps you prevent disease and maintain good health. Your primary care provider is able to diagnose and treat a wide variety of illnesses. When more specialized care is needed, he or she works with other types of doctors. “Primary care providers can care for you and your family from cradle to grave,” says Chandra Ponniah, MD, a primary care physician with Faith Regional Health Services. “We understand the family dynamics in illness and health. If you have multiple specialists involved in your care, we are able to connect the dots. I recommend you see your primary care provider at least once a year to discuss healthy lifestyles, immunizations, and other age-specific recommendations per guidelines.” There are a number of different types of health care providers who fall into the primary care category. For example: Family physicians. These doctors diagnose and treat problems that occur anywhere in the body and deal with most kinds of diseases. They treat people of all ages. Internists. Like family physicians, they also treat a wide vari- ety of medical problems. The difference is that internists focus entirely on adults. Pediatricians. These doctors are experts in children’s health. They work on preventing and managing health problems among newborns, infants, children, teens and even young adults. In addition to those mentioned, other medical professionals can also serve as primary care providers. These may include nurse practitioners and physician assistants. They often work in conjunction with a primary care physician. Pr imar y care providers FIND YOUR FIT Visit FRHS.org and use our “Find a Doctor” tool to find a primary care provider near you.