Primary Care Physicians in Portsmouth NH

Primary care physicians (PCPs) serve as the first contact for any medical concern or issue that you experience. As such, there is a level of familiarity and trust between PCPs and their patients that is lacking when an individual does not have a PCP. Typically, PCPs practice general or family medicine, while some also have specialties in pediatric medicine, gynecology, internal medicine, and others.

While most PCPs are board-certified physicians, nurse practitioners or physician’s assistants can also function as primary care physicians. PCPs focus on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of any medical concern. As such, they order lab work, conduct routine physicals, provide referrals, write prescriptions for their patients, and other essential medical services.

There are numerous invaluable benefits of having a primary care provider who you can bring all of your health-related concerns to! There are five official benefits of seeing a primary care provider: 1) continuity, 2) convenience, 3) health maintenance, 4) early detection, and 5) better communication.

When you rely exclusively on urgent care or emergency room services, which have their uses, you have to start from scratch with every visit since there is no continuity with the care provider you see. As such, each doctor or health professional you see will want a complete review of your medical history, medications you are taking, any surgeries or procedures you have had, as well as any allergies or conditions you have.

On the other hand, having a primary care provider that you regularly see gives your provider an intimate knowledge of your medical history, lab test results, and anything pertinent to medical treatment. Your visits to a PCP will be more streamlined, and you can trust that they are taking into account your complete medical history when they prescribe treatment for you.

Furthermore, whenever you have a medical concern, a primary care provider will have a more thorough understanding of the causes and potential severity of the problem. Consequently, they will have a better idea of whether or not you should see a specialist and if there is a significant cause for concern because of their intimate knowledge of your health and medical history.

Depending on the specific specialty of your primary care provider, primary care services can include any of the following:

• Annual physicals, in addition to other physicals
• Care for urgent but not life-threatening medical concerns
• Acute and chronic condition, disease, or illness care (i.e., arthritis, asthma, or diabetes)
• Communicate with home care
• Disease prevention
• End-of-life care
• Geriatric care
• Health education and promotion
• Lab work and screening requests
• Maternity and childcare
• Mental health care
• Nutritional guidance
• Pediatric care
• Pre- and post-natal care
• Prescription medicine
• Psychosocial services
• Routine care
• Specialist referrals

If you have a condition that requires a specialist’s services, you should still see your primary care physician first! Since your PCP will have an in-depth knowledge of your medical history and condition, they will be able to provide you with a specialist referral that is particularly well-suited to your medical concerns and needs. Otherwise, you will require a referral from a doctor whom you will likely not have met before.

If you hope to get acquainted with an excellent primary care physician in Portsmouth NH, we extend a warm welcome to Portsmouth Family Care! Call us for more information. We serve patients from Portsmouth NH, Newington NH, Durham NH, Madbury NH, Dover NH, Greenland NH, Stratham NH, and Newfields NH.