All doctors will recommend that everybody needs their own primary-care provider – a trusted family physician who knows your history, owns your father got cancer at the age of 40, and someone that will help you figure out how to live your best life based on your hefty history. Let’s add in someone that knows your face and name without needing to take a look at your chart first.
Sad to say that for most of us, this is not the case. First of all, it is such a challenge to get the doctor to see us. Professor of molecular medicine at Scripps Research in La Jolla, California, Eric Topol, M.D. says that, “there’s no reason for healthy men under 40, or anyone for that matter, to get annual checkups.” When it comes to the results of yearly checkups, “all the data shows the lack of value, and they should be strongly discouraged,” he added. This point of view was merely echoed by the belief of the Society of General Internal Medicine.
According to 14 different studies, having your annual exam doesn’t to anything to reduce a risk of serious disease or death. Secondly, “If you take a 21-year-old male in 2020 and ask, ‘Where are you going to get care today versus five, ten, or 20 years from now?’ he’s not going to know, because people change employers, health plans, and even doctors relatively frequently,” says associate professor of public health-care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School, Ateev Mehrotra, M.D.
“So the question is: Is that relationship even possible?”
All of these issues, plus the cost and convenience that people have to keep in mind, it’s not surprising that nearly half of Americans under the age of 30 don’t even have a primary-care physician.
But there’s no need to worry just yet, because it doesn’t seem so bad!
Nowadays, there are cheaper and more convent ways to get medical help rather than sitting in the waiting room and waiting for your physician to free themselves up just to see you for a minute or two. And if you are generally healthy, these will be great solutions.
Allan H. Gorroll, M.D., professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School said, “Most millennials use urgent care, go online, talk to their friends, and think that’s health care.” It is unfortunately, not the case. A health plan in this manner can lead to a lot of issues not getting caught in time. With this type of approach to taking care of your health, “some things may be overlooked or prescribed inappropriately,” he added.
Despite the convenience of today’s healthcare, you still have to have a plan. If you already have a doctor that you are comfortable with, then stick with them. If you have a chronic illness like high blood sugar that may turn into diabetes, or if you have a high risk of contracting other things such as heart disease, then you definitely need a main doctor.
If you wish to go this new route, here are some tools to help you navigate what’s out there in order to achieve the best health care. Here’s the lowdown on how you can see your doctor without wasting your time, money and going through scheduling hassles without putting your health at risk.
1] Consult a Doctor by Phone
The convenience of getting to talk or have a videoconference with a real doctor without ever leaving your house. Some international insurance companies have partnered up with medical health start ups like Doctor On Demand and Teladoc, so these options could be part of your health plan. In 2018, about 7 million people kept in contact with their doctors this way.
Check out a telehealth site or your insurance app to see your options.
PROS: Convenience, speed and hassle-free. Since you’ve scheduled a call about a specific sickness like a sore throat, you’ll save time from other comments such as the “you need to live a healthier lifestyle” speech. Research has proven that people can be more honest with their symptoms or undesirable behaviors when in front of the computer.
CONS: Not all telehealth providers have the same excellent service. When choosing the right app for you, look at their client reviews or partner up with a well-known health care company like Blue Cross or a hospital that you trust. Check out these doctors online as well.
2] Go to Urgent Care
More than 50% of millennials nowadays get urgent care from establishments like CityMD, Concerts and MedExpress or retail clinics. These places are usually run by physician’s assistants or nurse practitioners so they work well when dealing with minor issues like colds, fevers and gashes; they can also administer flu shots. Unfortunately, they cannot stitch you up or give you an x-ray. These urgent-care centers are not built for life-threatening medical issues, so go straight to the ER if you’re having chest pain.
PROS: They’re cheaper with less waiting time as compared to the ER and they usually send you or your doctor a report. They’re also easy to find.
CONS: They have a tendency to overprescribe medicines as seen in one recent study of nearly half the patients were given antibiotics for cases like allergies, flu, asthma and ear infections – even if these sicknesses don’t call for antibiotics. Retail clinics had the best record of only 14% of patients were inappropriately prescribed.
3] Get Your Prescription Online
If you need a prescription for things like UTI, genital herpes, hair loss, or performance anxiety, getting one from a respectable “digital health clinic” like Hims would be the best way to go.
PROS: No embarrassing moments when visiting a doctor with these problems. You’ll need to fill out a form regarding your issue and healthy history for them to determine the eligibility of the prescription. If they have further questions, they will reach out to you. The medication will conveniently arrive in your doorstep a couple of days later.
CONS: This new way of getting medication without really “consulting” a doctor makes a lot of people uncomfortable. Dr. Mehrorta does say that it isn’t quite as shady as people may think. “My initial skepticism was tempered,” he says. That still doesn’t calm people’s nerves, though.
4] Splurge for a Medical Concierge
These wellness centers and fancy doctor’s offices can get you initial diagnostics and various appointments with their doctors every year. Packages and monthly fees vary depending on the company, but you will be assured that their doctors will not only solve your health problems but also help you change your lifestyle for prevention of other issues. One company called Forward gives its members genetic testing, body scans, and even personalised health plans. It is also called a “supplement” to your insurance plan, but definitely not a substitute for it.
PROS: The doctors in these facilities actually give their time to understand your concerns and patterns. They also advice on healthy eating, stress reduction and personalised exercise programs.
CONS: Having a medical concierge is expensive. Forward goes for about $149 a month, and Parsley Health could run from $150-250 a month, depending on the package you are willing to spend for. Despite the membership fees, tests and blood work are not even included.
5] Monitor your Data with Wearables
In today’s market, there are different wearables available to track the heart rate, blood pressure and sleeping patterns. Some insurance companies have even started to use them to asses the individual’s daily activities in order to give discounts on their premiums!
PROS: Your wearable can actually detect a heart problem like the Apple Watch Heart Rate app. Whoop’s sleep-activity data is also used by the Weill Cornell Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic to track their patients decrease REM Sleep, which is a risk factor for Alzheimer’s.
CONS: While wearables are helpful for monitoring your daily health activities, they still cannot come close to a doctor’s job.
6] Check your DNA
In 2019, more than 26 million Americans had sent in their DNA samples to check for ancestry and genetic health risks.
PROS: Having your DNA history shows what risks for certain diseases you have, like breast cancer (and yes, even men can get this) and blood-clotting disorders. This knowledge can improve your prevention of ever getting them.
CONS: Receiving news that you’re at risk of a certain disease can be jarring, and you will still need to undergo more tests with a doctor to see if the diagnosis is accurate – in order to prevent these genetic sicknesses.
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